Anjac: “An ambitious CSR strategy for the next five years”

It has been a little more than a year since our last interview. Can you tell us about any developments in your CSR at Anjac?

Aurélien Chaufour - The Anjac Group and I have very strong convictions and place a high value on CSR. After three years of fast-paced acquisitions, I wanted us to accelerate our actions and push for synergy across the companies. Also, this year, with our 12 companies we co-constructed an ambitious and very concrete CSR strategy for the next five years.

Our goal is to continue to move forward quickly in order to create value for our customers and territories where safety, health, and the environment are the number one priorities.

Does innovation still have a role in your CSR strategy?

Aurélien Chaufour - More than ever! Innovation is a constant driving force, and I believe it greatly motivates the products and services we offer. Not only does it encourage more environmental sustainability, but it also places the focus on consumer health and regional benefits. CSR lead to challenges, but above all, it creates value for our industries and companies.

Innovation is the cornerstone of our group’s CSR strategy. I can already proudly tell you that 90% of the innovations from our own R&D relate to sustainability. This is the result of many years of work by our R&D teams. The Anjac Green Attack innovation program guides our internal actions toward sustainable innovations affecting formulas, processes, and packaging. Solid cosmetics, certified household compostability, a natural approach, natural health... the achievements are numerous. And our R&D committee is working to take it even further...

Our Responsible Purchasing policy goes hand in hand with our goals. Anjac has begun working with our top suppliers through EcoVadis, an internationally recognized rating system.

On what actions is your CSR strategy based and how is it implemented within your companies?

Aurélien Chaufour - Innovation is the first pillar. Then we chose very concrete and pragmatic actions that allow us to involve all the teams and businesses. CSR is everyone’s business.

We need to build an industrial model that combines sustainability and performance. This involves eco-efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at our manufacturing sites. We have set our objectives for the next five years, and we can share them with our clients with full transparency.

The ECOVADIS rating, which covers the full 360° vision of an integrated CSR approach, helps us measure our progress and creates a challenge for each of our sites. Already in 2021, we have reached a milestone, with 51% of the group’s sales achieving a GOLD medal rating. We set a goal for ourselves to achieve Gold across the board within five years, so why not go for Platinum!

What about your social and societal actions?

Aurélien Chaufour - Obviously, all of this progress is possible thanks to our teams, who are highly motivated by their impact on people. We prioritize safety, along with autonomous, pressure-free team development, always encouraging the group’s entrepreneurial spirit.

Our "Zero Accident" policy is a priority, deployed at each of the group’s sites.

Our societal commitment reflects our values and our activities in our territories. Human and Health, in its entirety, does a good job of summing up what is most important to us. We support the Gustave Roussy Hospital, Europe’s #1 children’s cancer center, CEW, the cosmetics industry’s top-ranked network providing beauty care for hospital patients; EPIC, with its Prerana and Agir pour l’École associations; and the Maison des Femmes, a unique medical-social structural model providing care and assistance to women who are victims of violence. And obviously, we place great importance on universal access to daily care, which is why we regularly donate products, an action we’ve found to be very effective.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us before we go?

Aurélien Chaufour - The Anjac Group demonstrates its customers clear ambitions and CSR objectives, driven by innovation. This marks a new stage in our development. We’re on our way to actively contribute to the transformation of our Health and Beauty industries.

Source : (www.anjac.com)