The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has announced the official opening of its new BioTech Hub in Olen, nearby its manufacturing and distribution campus in Oevel, Belgium. This new facility will focus exclusively on manufacturing bio-based raw materials.
By identifying and creating proprietary, bio-based alternatives to traditional ingredients, the company aims to harness the power of living organisms —such as plants, yeast, or bacteria –to produce active biomolecules and to further advance sustainability across its product development and manufacturing processes.
The ELC local teams will partner closely with Advanced Technologies Pioneering (ATP) scientists based at the company’s Melville, New York Research & Development (R&D) labs to complement existing efforts underway related to fermentation and bio-based materials. They will also work closely with ELC’s manufacturing teams in Belgium to pilot and manufacture the production of these raw materials at scale.
“Our prestige beauty products depend on the highest quality raw materials. By producing our own biotechnology-based materials at one of our main manufacturing campuses, we are able to manufacture at-scale in a more responsible way,” said Roberto Canevari, Executive Vice President, Global Supply Chain, ELC.
Led by Caroline Paulussen, PhD, the new space will significantly increase the Estée Lauder group’s capacity for the in-house production of bio-based raw materials. It has been undergoing production testing over the past several months and will move into commercial production beginning in 2025.
ELC has been manufacturing products at its facilities in Belgium since 1965, when it opened its first international manufacturing facility in Oevel. Over the years, the company has expanded its presence on this campus, including the recent opening of a new distribution center.
“Our BioTech Hub will support our efforts to provide more responsible and cutting-edge beauty solutions to consumers,” said Jamal Chamariq, Senior Vice President, EMEA UK&I and Travel Retail, Global Supply Chain, ELC. “The location of the new center in Belgium also will enable us to partner more closely with leaders in biotechnology, further enhancing our innovation ecosystem in Europe and beyond.”
