Unilever to strengthen its localized research in China

British consumer goods company Unilever Plc said it would strengthen its localized research in China, one of its three largest markets globally, and China serves as an indispensable part of its strategy to develop more green and sustainable products.

Chinese consumers have shown an increasingly high demand for high-quality, sustainable and affordable home care products, Unilever said, and it would like to cooperate with more Chinese suppliers to lead the transformation of the home care industry.

The company launched its Clean Future 2.0 strategy in November to meet an increasingly diversified demand of its consumers. In 2020, it launched the Clean Future plan, aiming to invest 1 billion euros ($1.09 billion) by 2030 to replace the ingredients derived from fossil fuels in its cleaning and laundry products formulations with those from renewable or recycled sources.

"The future of our home care categories is low carbon, renewable, biodegradable, without plastic waste and trusted as safe. We are determined to lead the transition to carbon neutrality and no plastic," said Florian Vernay, global communications and sustainability director of Unilever Home Care.

This is consistent with China's goal to peak its carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, Unilever said.

The company said in China, they would work closely with manufacturers in traditional industries to reduce carbon emissions through the use of renewable energy and innovative processes.

It said it will also actively cooperate with Chinese partners who possess leading technologies. Those include biotechnology companies and startups with carbon cycling and carbon capture technologies.

Unilever said its Shanghai R&D center, which stands as one of its six global R&D centers, has the capability to serve the Chinese market while supporting the global market.

"The Shanghai R&D team serves as a global innovation engine for Unilever. China boasts leading research capabilities and strong manufacturing capabilities in R&D," said Shen Jun, research and development head of North Asia at Unilever.