Turning waste and by-products into high-performance cosmetic ingredients
How Evonik and Celtic Renewables are advancing circular beauty with ECOHANCE® Soft BOL
Sustainability is now a baseline expectation in beauty and personal care, with consumers demanding products that combine high performance with credible environmental benefits. This shift is accelerating the adoption of circular feedstocks and innovative ingredient technologies.i In this article, we explore how Evonik and Celtic Renewables are together transforming waste and by-products into sustainable, high-performance cosmetic ingredients.
For Evonik, this challenge is not new. With nearly a century of experience in manufacturing and supplying cosmetic ingredients, the company has been continuously evolving its portfolio. Over the past decade, its personal care business has been strategically reshaped toward sustainable specialties through focused acquisitions and divestments. This shift is being driven by customer expectations for measurable sustainability particularly greater traceability and transparency around the origin and story behind ingredients.
Turning waste and by-products into high-value ingredients
A partnership enabling circular cosmetic ingredients
The collaboration between Evonik and Celtic Renewables is built on complementary strengths. As Brierley notes, “What stands out about working with Evonik is their scientific approach. Everything is grounded in evidence.”
Celtic Renewables provides access to sustainable raw materials derived from waste and by-products, while Evonik uses its deep expertise in product development, formulation, and global market access to create commercially successful cosmetic ingredients.
This ecosystem approach grounded in science is essential to scaling circular solutions because it allows both partners to focus on what they do best. As an early adopter of Celtic Renewables’ technology, Evonik plays a pivotal role in accelerating industrial scale-up and market acceptance by integrating these novel feedstocks into commercial products at an early stage.
The impact: Measurable sustainability and performance benefits
Using next-generation feedstocks delivers dual environmental benefits. First, they reduce carbon emissions by replacing fossil-based raw materials with industrial waste and by-products. Second, they valorize materials that would otherwise have little or no value, creating new revenue opportunities upstream, for example in agriculture.
As Wolfgang Goertz, Vice President Cosmetic Solutions at Evonik explains, “Circular solutions like these allow us to address multiple needs at once - CO₂ reduction, waste valorization, and traceability.”
For customers, this translates into flexible sustainability benefits. Some prioritize CO₂ reduction, while others value ingredient traceability and the story behind them. In beauty and personal care, storytelling connects ingredients to emotional value, helping consumers understand origin, production and impact, while building trust and differentiating products in a competitive market. As Goertz puts it, “There is a story behind every feedstock, whether it’s from potatoes, whisky production, or olive oil waste streams.”
Overcoming challenges: Scaling circular innovation
Despite the strong value proposition, scaling circular solutions comes with challenges. Investment remains a major barrier, as new production capacities require significant capital and long-term supply agreements.
In addition, ensuring consistent quality and supply can be complex when working with variable feedstocks derived from waste and by-products. However, Celtic Renewables’ robust fermentation technology is designed to handle this variability, enabling reliable, industrial-scale production.
Another key consideration is balancing innovation with supply security, particularly when relying on specific feedstocks.
Looking ahead: Expanding the circular economy
The potential of this partnership extends far beyond a single ingredient. Evonik and Celtic Renewables are exploring further applications of next-generation feedstocks across markets beyond beauty and personal care.
At the same time, additional feedstocks and products are being investigated, opening the door to an even broader portfolio of circular solutions. Ultimately, long-term success will depend on combining four critical factors: sustainability, performance, availability, and price.
Performance remains key
While sustainability is a powerful driver, it cannot stand alone. This is where partnerships like the one between Evonik and Celtic Renewables make a difference - bringing together scientific rigor, innovative technology, and market expertise to deliver solutions that meet both environmental and performance expectations. As Goertz emphasizes, “Sustainability alone is not enough. If a product doesn’t perform, if it doesn’t feel right or function properly, consumers will not adopt it.”
By transforming waste and by-products into value, Evonik and Celtic Renewables are a broader shift toward a circular economy in beauty and demonstrating how collaboration can accelerate the transition toward more sustainable, high-performance beauty ingredients.
This article was based on an interview with Bettina Brierley, Chief Commercial Officer at Celtic Renewables and Wolfgang Goertz, Vice President Cosmetic Solutions at Evonik.