In a move that promises to make the American Cleaning Institute more agile, forward thinking and better positioned for the long-term, the association unveiled a new strategic plan at its annual meeting and industry convention in Orlando. More than 1,000 industry executives from around the world attended the event, January 27-February 1.

“We will stand and deliver based on four distinct pillars: business, science, sustainability and communications,” ACI President and CEO Melissa Hockstad told attendees during her annual state-of-the-industry address. “Our new strategic plan will strengthen ACI’s focus with where we want to win and where we can have maximum impacts for our member companies.”

Regarding business, Hockstad told attendees that ACI wants  to nurture impactful relationships to accelerate growth and innovation across the cleaning products industry.

“We will look to help grow business-to-business related opportunities for ACI members throughout the year,” she explained. “We are seeking to increase our impact on legislative and regulatory outcomes that can affect our marketplaces across the supply chain.”

The second pillar, focused on science, will advance, promote and utilize science to drive informed dialogue and decision-making, according to Hockstad.

“We want to increase the availability of and access to human and environmental safety information for cleaning product ingredients,” she said. “ACI is committed to seeking alignment across our industry and the stakeholder community on interpreting cleaning product safety information to drive common sense decision-making by policymakers.”

The third pillar is sustainability. Hockstad said ACI is committed to define and drive impactful industry action to foster and shape a sustainable future.

“We want to unite our supply chain to increase transparency; reduce emissions; value nature and contribute positively,” she said.

Finally, the fourth pillar is communications. ACI intends to proactively engage stakeholders to increase understanding, knowledge and trust of the industry.

“We want to further shift the media narrative about our products and chemistries to showcase their beneficial and essential nature to consumers and customers. Our commitment is to increase consumer and stakeholder confidence in what our industry produces and the positive contributions we make to health and well-being.”

In closing her state of the industry address, Hockstad urged attendees to get involved with the Association. Specifically, she asked members to:

• Be engaged;
• Be open to new ideas; and
• Be better together.

“ACI is on the front lines and is the backbone of the cleaning product industry. ACI knows that we can only succeed through the commitment and active engagement of our member companies,” said Hockstad. “With ACI’s ongoing transformation, we cannot and will not be satisfied with business as usual.”

A Sustainable Story

It may be just one of the four pillars of ACI’s new strategic plan, but sustainability served as a foundation for much of the annual meeting. For example, Melissa Grande, director, sustainability, ACI, unveiled #OurFutureIsClean, the new sustainability campaign that launches this month during National Cleaning Week, March 22-28.

According to Grande, by driving bold action, the industry can work to create a clean, sustainable world. Specifically, the campaign aims to

• Make a real difference in achieving ACI’s sustainability goals;
• Dare industry to make bolder commitments and take action;
• Share ACI members’ accomplishments;
• Consider how ACI can do its part; and
• Help others understand their role in achieving success.

#OurFutureIsClean is just the latest example of how ACI and its member companies have increased their sustainability efforts. Grande walked attendees through more than a decade of sustainability achievements, beginning in 2004 when the Institute (then known as the Soap and Detergent Association) published its Principles for Sustainable Development. In 2013, ACI began publishing an annual Sustainability Report to update members, the industry, press and regulators about its achievements, achievements that are built on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. During her presentation, Grande ticked off many of these accomplishments, including:

• Increased Transparency—seven members use SmartLabel covering 2000 SKUs, 786 ingredients are identified in ACI’s Ingredient Safety Initiative, seven members reported 2018 data to the Chemical Footprint Project and 33% of ACI formulators offer Safer Choice-certified cleaning products;
• Reducing Emissions—a 37% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 19% increase in renewable energy by product formulators since 2008, 54% of members published their previous year’s GHG emissions through some form of public report or reporting system in 2018, 44% of ACI members have targets to reduce GHG emissions, improve energy efficiency or increase the use of renewable energy, seven committed to RE 100 and 11 committed to the Business Ambition for 1.5°C;
• Valuing Nature—a 25% reduction in water use by product formulators since 2008, 32% of ACI product formulator members have committed to ensuring packaging is recyclable, 35% of member companies formulating products for consumers have a defined commitment to increase use of recycled and renewable materials within their packaging, 12 chemical companies make bio-preferred ingredients and 14 formulators offer bio-preferred cleaning products, 11 companies participate in Together for Sustainability, 11 are members of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, eight joined the global commitment for a New Plastics Economy, six have teamed with Loop to offer consumers reusable packaging across multiple FMCG categories and 16 engage with or utilize the How2recycle label.
• Contributing Positively—More than $200,000 has been donated to Clean the World, 34 ACI members involved in the United Nations Global Compact and 29% of ACI members have aligned their sustainability strategies with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

More specifically, these goals include:

• By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature;
• By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally;
• Increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global mix by 2030;
• Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning; and
• By 2020 achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment.

Corporate Views

Sustainability continued to be a topic during a special session moderated by Hockstad. Key executives at three member companies reviewed the issues driving the cleaning industry and and provided some answers about the future. According to ACI Chair Sundar Raman of Procter & Gamble, the industry is in a period of growth. He maintained that the total amount of innovation, the amount of investment, and the solutions that the industry provides are very well-received.

“There is more opportunity for innovation,” he insisted. “People’s lives continue to be time-starved. The solutions that we can provide to consumers to make their lives easier are more in demand than ever before.”

He said that business is aligning in such a way that what is right for the consumer and the shareholder can be right for the environment as well. For example, P&G and other detergent makers have introduced cold water formulas that can have big impacts on energy use.

“Heating water accounts for 95% of energy use in the laundry category,” he reminded the audience.

Raman noted that P&G CEO David Taylor is board chair of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, a consortium of companies and their CEOs who are committed to end plastic waste in the environment. To support this vision, the Alliance committed to develop and invest in solutions that will help prevent the leakage of plastic waste into rivers, seas and the ocean. The group marked its one-year anniversary in January and has 40 member companies that have committed $1.5 billion over five years.

“Plastics is a big global issue where we can have an impact,” he added.

In its first year, the Alliance approved support for more than 10 major projects. These include a project in Jembrana, Indonesia, where 13,000 metric tons of plastic leak into the environment each year. The Jembrana project is focused on household collections, with an emphasis on creating new local jobs in waste management. Another project is a partnership with the non-profit organization Renew Oceans, which is looking to halt the flow of plastic into the Ganges River. Here, the Alliance is contributing funding, materials, logistics capability and technical expertise.

Tim Mulhere, executive vice president and president of global institutional, Ecolab, reviewed some of the macrotrends that are propelling the cleaning industry forward. He noted that the global population is expected to grow from seven to 10 billion during the next several decades, and the middle class, which expanded around the world during the past 10-15 years, will continue to grow.

“With that comes rising expectations,” he warned the audience. “Think about information flow, social media, and travel, all of which exposes people to opportunities outside their region or country. All of that buoys expectations for cleaning, hygiene and food safety.”

And it all bodes well for the cleaning industry.

“We have a tailwind at our backs, that we can take advantage of. Bringing innovation to the table is a key component of taking advantage of that,” said Mulhere.

According to F. Quinn Stepan Jr., chairman, president and CEO of Stepan Company, the biggest challenge facing the industry today is “chemophobia, the fear of chemicals. And I think there are segments of the population that don’t value science or the data that we provide.”

Stepan said that those who don’t focus on the science, nor the data, are the vocal minority and today they have a disproportionate impact on policy.

“Your call to action is appropriate,” he told Hockstad, in reference to her state-of-the-industry address. “We are the best advocates for our products. The challenge is to make sure that people appreciate the risks and the benefits of our technology.”

Stepan said that the industry is very fortunate to have a lot of talented, committed people who are working for companies that are providing significant health and hygiene benefits for people around the world.
Like Raman, he noted that the industry is growing and has significant opportunities to continue to grow and support human health and hygiene around the world.

“It’s an exciting time, and based on technology and science, we can make a big difference in the world,” he concluded.

A Changing Workforce

With unemployment near record lows in the US, it is also an exciting time to be on the hunt for a new job. According to Stepan, employees have higher expectations. As a result, employers must have robust environmental, social and governance (ESG) programs in place to keep employees excited and engaged.

“It’s not enough to make money and sell soap,” he said. ”What’s good for the environment is good for business.”

At the same time, Stepan gets employees to act like owners with an aggressive Employee Stock Ownership Plan.

Mulhere noted that Ecolab’s mission statement revolves around safe food, cleaner water and a healthier environment. As a result, the company doesn’t have a problem attracting talent. However, Ecolab’s customers, including building service contractors, are plagued by high turnover.

Raman noted that even with record low unemployment, the talent is available. The key, he said, is diversity and inclusion.

“Four or five billion households use P&G products,” he explained. “You must have empathy for consumers. We have that culture.”