LANXESS at the SEPAWA Congress 2026: more product protection, more sustainability, more formulation freedom

LANXESS will present its comprehensive portfolio of preservatives and multifunctionals for personal and household care products at the SEPAWA Congress in Berlin. The focus of the company’s exhibition at booth A160-163 will be on solutions that enable manufacturers to protect their products, achieve sustainability goals, and simultaneously meet the growing demands of consumers and regulatory authorities.

For the first time, the specialty chemicals company is also showcasing preservative solutions for the rapidly growing pet care market: With Neolone PH 100 Preservative and Bioban PH 100 Antimicrobial, LANXESS offers well-established and broad-spectrum preservatives that reliably protect formulations against microbial contamination. In this way, they help ensure product quality and shelf life throughout the product’s entire lifespan. They are used, for example, in dog shampoos.

“Sustained global growth is expected for pet care products through 2035, with annual growth rates ranging from four to six percent in individual regions or segments. Consumers are increasingly investing in high-quality wellness and care products for pets. This also raises the bar for safety, quality, and skin tolerance of the formulations used. With our established preservative solutions, we support manufacturers in successfully positioning high-performance, safe, and reliable products on the market,” said Vivien Konetzky, Global Product Manager at LANXESS.

Cosmelin: biodegradable specialty esters for silicone-based and silicone-free formulations

With Cosmelin, LANXESS is launching a new line of high-performance, readily biodegradable specialty esters for cosmetic and personal care products. The products are designed for manufacturers of skin and hair care products, sunscreens, and decorative cosmetics. The Cosmelin specialty esters were developed to deliver premium sensory performance in both silicone-containing and silicon-free cosmetic formulations. Compared to conventional silicone compounds, however, Cosmelin degrades significantly faster and more completely in the environment after use. In this way, LANXESS is addressing the growing demand for clean beauty products and sustainable ingredients without compromising the performance that consumers expect from premium cosmetic products.

Traditionally, silicones provide slip, spreadability, smoothness, and shine, but their compatibility with some organic ingredients can limit formulation flexibility. Cosmelin esters offer an effective alternative while also enhancing performance in silicone-based systems through excellent compatibility with both silicones and organic ingredients.

Purox and Kalaguard Scopeblue as particularly sustainable preservatives

At the SEPAWA Congress, LANXESS is showcasing Purox S and Kalaguard—two established preservatives—in their particularly environmentally friendly “Scopeblue” alternatives. LANXESS uses the Scopeblue label to identify its own products whose CO2 footprint is at least 50 percent lower than that of conventional products or that consist of at least 50 percent sustainable raw materials.

Purox S is a nature-identical and readily biodegradable sodium benzoate. It safely and effectively inhibits microbial growth in personal care products and cosmetics up to a pH value of 6.5. In addition to the established product, LANXESS also offers Purox S Scopeblue. LANXESS produces this variant using renewable energy and renewable raw materials. As a result, the product is virtually climate-neutral according to the mass balance approach.

Kalaguard SB is a user-friendly preservative for household products. It is used, for example, in cleaning agents, laundry detergents, dishwashing liquids, wet wipes, fabric softeners, and room sprays. It is the only sodium benzoate approved for home care applications and thus meets the highest regulatory requirements in key markets. Kalaguard is also available in a Scopeblue variant with a significantly reduced CO2 footprint—manufactured from mass-balance-certified, renewable raw materials.

Emollients for greater formulation flexibility

In addition, LANXESS presents its portfolio of high-purity emollients for cosmetic and personal care formulations. These include Purolan IDD (isododecane), Purolan IHD (isohexadecane), and Adimoll DB (dibutyl adipate). They offer light sensory profiles, optimized textures, and additional formulation flexibility for skin care, hair care, and cosmetic applications.

With Purolan PD-LO, LANXESS also offers a low-odor, multifunctional pentanediol-based ingredient for leave-on and rinse-off applications. It acts as a humectant and antimicrobial booster, thereby supporting the performance of primary preservative systems.

Oxone – a high-performance oxidizing agent for household care applications

With Oxone, LANXESS offers manufacturers of household care products a versatile building block for high-performance and energy-efficient formulations. The monopersulfate compound is a chlorine-free and odorless oxidizing agent that reliably removes stains from fabrics and surfaces and is effective even against the most stubborn soiling. In laundry detergents, it is effective even at low water temperatures. This enables manufacturers to respond to the growing consumer demand for energy-saving cold washes, which extend the lifespan of garments. Oxone is suitable for, among other things, laundry detergents, dishwashing detergents, and cleaners for hard surfaces and household appliances.

Technical presentation: “Life cycle assessment (LCA) for detergents in the DPP era: focus on preservatives”

On October 16 at 11:30 a.m., Dr. Matthias Kunze, Business Development Manager at LANXESS, will speak in Room 1 about the sustainability challenges that preservatives are facing in laundry detergents.

With the introduction of the EU-wide “Digital Product Passport” (DPP), stricter requirements for the transparent presentation of data across the entire life cycle will apply to laundry detergents. Data such as the product’s carbon footprint or its recycling content must be derived from recognized LCA tools and databases. Preservatives are used in low concentrations but are crucial for product protection and efficacy. As a result, their environmental impact depends to a large extent on both the formulation and performance aspects. In his presentation, Dr. Matthias Kunze compares the life cycle assessment of conventional sodium benzoate as a preservative with that of plant-based sodium benzoate. He demonstrates how such life cycle assessments for ingredients can be directly incorporated into the DPP datasets for detergents.

Saltigo: sustainable custom manufacturing solutions and highly effective insect repellents

The LANXESS subsidiary Saltigo is also represented at SEPAWA. It is regarded as one of the leading providers in the field of custom manufacturing, with expertise in solutions for personal care, specialty molecules, and active ingredients. Saltigo offers comprehensive, one-stop service—from process development through to series production. Thanks to the development of zero-waste products and the use of sustainable raw materials, Saltigo can support its customers’ sustainability goals and thus offers solutions for products with an improved environmental profile.

In addition, Saltigo is showcasing Saltidin, an effective yet skin-friendly active ingredient for insect repellents. It is ideal for manufacturers who want to offer their customers reliable and well-tolerated protection.