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In harmony with nature

Forward-looking sustainability strategy

The company has long pursued a comprehensive, forward-looking sustainability strategy featuring environmentally compatible and biodegradable ingredients for cleaning products and innovative, recyclable packaging. The entire Werner & Mertz Group is a pioneer for a functioning circular economy far beyond its own industry.

  • Our Responsibility
    for more Sustainability

    The sustainability activities of Werner & Mertz have an impact beyond our own company. With the Recyclate Initiative, the European Surfactants Initiative and targeted project partnerships, we are leading the way with innovative, sustainable solutions.

    Detailed information about the sustainability activities of the Werner & Mertz Group can be found at our sustainability portal:

  • Green Care Professional:
    Safe for humans and the environment

    For several years the Green Care Professional brand has been synonymous with first-class cleaning performance and integrally sustainable cleaning under the sign of the circular economy.

  • Certifications

    A core element in our sustainability strategy involves obtaining demanding certifications.

    We are a pioneer in the industry with the most Cradle to Cradle® certified products and are proud that we have proof of the recyclability of our formulas and our packaging.

Milestones

  • 1971
    Founding of Tana-Chemie GmbH
  • 1989
    Creation of Green Care Professional brand
  • 2003
    EMAS-certified production site in Mainz. Followed by Hallein in 2005.
  • 2005
    First EU Ecolabel certification
  • 2007
    First Nordic Swan certification
  • 2007
    Revision of development guidelines and publication of sustainability information for every product
  • 2008
    First bottle with 30% share of recyclate
  • 2013
    First Cradle-to-Cradle® Gold certification for a complete range of cleaning products
  • 2014
    First bottle of 100% Post-Consumer Recyclate
  • 2015
    Cradle to Cradle Products Innovator Award
  • 2018
    Release of the Green Care Performance Calculator
  • 2019
    German Environmental Award für Reinhard Schneider
  • 2020
    German Packaging Award for the first fully recyclable monomaterial pouch
  • 2021
    50 years of Werner & Mertz Professional
  • 2021
    Increase in rPET to 50% from the Yellow Bag
  • 2021
    Tana-Chemie GmbH wins EcoVadis Platinum Medal

True eco-effectiveness:
Doing the right things right

Sustainability is often mistakenly equated with efforts made to reduce pollutants. The process, however, has to begin much earlier so that the pollutants never get into circulation. A genuine circular economy goes even further and involves doing the right things right from the start. We live according to this credo along the entire value chain. The raw materials required for production are kept in biological and technical cycles and used again and again. It starts with the use of renewable energy in the production process and our efficient in-house water treatment and extends to integrally sustainable ingredients in formulas and packaging material made of recyclates.

Biological
Cycle

1. Formulas

1. Formulas We use only plant-based surfactants in our sustainable formulas. They contain no critical ingredients or allergens!

2. Product Our products are safe for users and kind to the environment.

3. Compost

3. Compost Our cleaning chemicals are completely biodegradable.

4. Plant-based raw materials

4. Plant-based Raw Materials We use renewable, plant-based raw materials.

1. New packaging

1. New Packaging We see waste as a resource: Almost all of our packaging is made of recyclable and recycled waste.

2. Product

2. Use Phase The dosing of our products is simple and resource-sparing.

3. Recycling

3. Recycling Simple disposal of empty packaging via the Yellow Bag.

4. Technical raw materials (recyclates)

4. Technical Raw Material (recyclates) Sorting and processing yield recyclates that are used to make packaging of high-quality plastic.

Technical
Cycle

With Green Care Professional into a circular future
Our new image film

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