Plant-based chemistries have an outsized role to play for the HPC sector by meeting demand for good, gentle, and green products
In the next four years, India’s growing appetite for organic personal care products is expected to reach over Rs. 236 billion with a CAGR of nearly 24 per cent according to India Organic Personal Care Market Analysis Report 2024-2029 by ResearchAndMarkets.
Sustainability is a catalytic trend shaping the Home and Personal Care (HPC) industry, unlocking significant growth and enabling vital innovation. One reason for this is that sustainability is not restricted to operations or manufacturing; it’s a core feature of the product itself. Rising demand for organic products, which are gentler for use compared to their petro-based counterparts, underscores how sustainability is not secondary to business growth, but is a deciding factor for it.
A sharpened focus on greener practices is driven not only by manufacturers’ internal commitment to sustainability for a healthier planet and business, but equally shaped by consumer preferences for eco-friendly, sustainable products. Home and personal care products require a strong sustainability proposition to attract consumer trust and loyalty.
Consumers today want products that are not only environmentally friendly but also safer for personal and home use. This marked shift is evident all around us, from organic gulaal (colours) for Holi, herbal pest repellents instead of insecticides, to sulphate-free shampoos. Plant-based chemistries have an outsized role to play for the HPC sector by meeting demand for good, gentle, and green products.
Plant-based chemistry makes use of renewable sources like plant biomass, derived from agricultural and forestry products and waste, as raw material for chemicals in place of fossil fuels. While this can help to make products much more sustainable and better for the environment, achieving this switch comes with various challenges. To make the adoption of plant-based chemistry feasible, an industry-wide commitment through R&D and collaborative action is essential.
Driving the Wave of Sustainability
Firstly, it’s critical to understand why plant-based chemistry in particular is an essential reform for the HPC industry. End-consumers are looking for products that are organic, eco-conscious and sustainable. This is viewed as not only being healthier for the environment, but also healthier for use on skin, hair and home needs.
Rising consumer awareness, particularly among Gen-Z, means that consumers are becoming more conscious of the ingredient list of not only food items but also any products they use, especially for personal care. Authenticity and naturalness of products is emerging as a key factor in deciding consumer preferences for beauty and personal care products. Creating value for this growing segment of consumers through high-quality, sustainable products can propel further growth for HPC brands, especially when catering to a younger generation who are now entering the workforce and spending more.
Crucially, sustainability has become a way to enhance differentiation in a competitive market. Gaining market share requires brands to constantly deepen their sustainability efforts through innovation and consistency. This cannot be limited to packaging or marketing efforts. Sustainability must be deepened across the value chain, from the very beginning during the formulation of ingredients used in creating the final product.
Pressing challenges
Despite the abundant and renewable nature of plant biomass in India, it is not yet efficiently collected and processed in India. This drives up costs and reduces the viability of plant-based chemical production at scale. This is a challenge that must be addressed collectively and collaboratively, allowing manufacturers across the sector to procure feedstock easily and efficiently.
Making plant-based chemistry cost-effective requires robust infrastructure for processing, storage and transporting. One reason why fossil fuels are seen as cheaper is that they enjoy an infrastructural advantage over emerging technologies, but it is precisely investing in new infrastructure that can help make sustainable technologies cost-efficient and easier to adopt at scale. Additionally, processing the feedstock can often be energy-intensive, which again requires infrastructure investments for renewable energy. However, despite these initial high capital costs, bio-based chemicals can unlock not only growth in domestic markets but also significant opportunities for India as a global manufacturing hub for green chemicals.
Lastly, while consumers are more aware of the need for sustainability than ever before, awareness of the need for bio-based chemicals as a critical enabler of sustainability is still comparatively low. This requires strong efforts by chemical manufacturers to highlight the value-add of plant-based chemistry to brands and end-consumers alike.
Road Ahead
India’s HPC brands and manufacturers can chart a path of sustainable growth, but this requires proactive efforts. Firstly, the importance of Research & Development cannot be understated. This serves to increase the sector’s green capabilities at large, innovate cost-effective methods of production, and improve the efficiency and standardisation of bio-based chemicals. Successful products and innovations aren’t accidents, they are most often the result of continuous, dedicated R&D.
Strengthening partnerships with stakeholders is also a vital next step. This involves close coordination between government agencies to ensure compliance, plant biomass collectors and distributors to overcome logistical hurdles, and research bodies to explore context-specific solutions, working together with the Home and Personal Care industry for stronger adoption. This will ensure that plant-based chemistries become a national strength that is visible across the industry, allowing India to flourish as a global leader in bio-based chemicals.