Cognis publishes Sustainability Report 2009: “Sustainability driven by innovation”

06-17-2010: Cognis has published its ninth Sustainability Report. Entitled “Sustainability driven by innovation”, the 2009 report shows how sustainability at Cognis goes hand in hand with innovation along the value chain. It provides full information about the company’s progress in putting the 24 Principles of Green Chemistry and Green Engineering into practice.

For Cognis, sustainability and innovation are inseparable: innovation drives sustainability, and sustainability is a source of inspiration for new innovations. To accelerate this virtuous circle, Cognis has taken further steps to firmly anchor the 24 Principles of Green Chemistry and Green Engineering in its processes during the last year. The 24 Principles look at products and processes from a 360° perspective, and therefore place Cognis in a better position to make informed decisions and steer its portfolio to a higher level of sustainability. For example, Cognis has developed tools to enable its R&D teams to apply these internationally recognized guidelines directly during the development phase of their projects.

In 2009, Cognis’ sustainability-based approach proved to be a sound business strategy: throughout the downturn, user demand for its environmentally sound solutions has shown remarkable resilience, remaining robust in mature markets and continuing to grow in emerging regions. Cognis sees this as a further confirmation of its business strategy and as a strong indication that global awareness of sustainability is far more than a passing trend.

“We are glad to be in a position to state that Cognis has a strong record on sustainability. But that does not mean we are satisfied – on the contrary, our accomplishments serve as inspiration to continue our hard work. And to keep applying our innovative drive in addressing the full spectrum of complex and evolving sustainability issues,” says Richard Ridinger, Chairman Sustainability Council.