Fact Sheet: SC Johnson Milestones in Environmental Leadership

SC Johnson’s environmental leadership spans decades and includes leadership in environmental conservation, ingredient responsibility, renewable energy use and transparency.

Please note: This is not meant to be an exhaustive list and does not cover everything SC Johnson has done in sustainability initiatives.

Here are some key milestones in our history of doing what’s right:

• 1975: SC Johnson voluntarily and unilaterally eliminates chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) from our aerosol products to protect the ozone layer. The move comes three years before the U.S. mandate and more than a decade before the 1987 Montreal Protocol.

 

• 1979: We sponsor the environmental documentary Living Planet to help introduce audiences to the Earth from above and make the case for environmental conservation.

 

• 1990: SC Johnson commissions a pioneering study about public attitudes on the environment. It becomes the precursor to GfK Roper’s Green Gauge® Report.
  
  

• 1990: SC Johnson launches its first bottle made with recycled plastic. The Future bottle was made from 100 percent post-consumer recycled PET plastic (less trigger and label) and was 100 percent recyclable. 
  
  

• 1990s: We lead a national grassroots coalition in the U.S. to promote aerosol can recycling. As a result, more than 5,000 communities (in North America) had access to curbside or drop-off aerosol can recycling.

 

• 1991: The publication of our first sustainability report makes SC Johnson one of the first consumer packaged goods companies to report openly and extensively about its programs and policies. See our latest report.

 

• 1994: SC Johnson receives the World Environment Center Gold Medal for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development.

 

• 1998: We help create The Caatinga Association to study and protect the Caatinga region of Brazil, which is home to remarkable biodiversity.

 

• 2001: SC Johnson formalizes our first-of-its-kind Greenlist™ program as a way to continually improve SCJ’s products by choosing ingredients that have reduce the human health and environmental impact of our products. 

 

• 2002: We become the first consumer packaged goods manufacturer to join the U.S. EPA’s Climate Leaders program, a voluntary partnership to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In 2006, we’re among the first participants to reach its GHG reduction targets.

 

• 2003: SC Johnson breaks ground on our first cogeneration turbine to produce electricity for the company’s largest global manufacturing facility using methane gas from a nearby public landfill.

 

• 2003: The U.S. EPA awards SC Johnson the first-ever Lifetime Atmospheric Achievement Award.

 

• 2004: SC Johnson eliminates PVC and PVDC from products and packaging due to concerns about the release of toxic chemicals into the environment when materials containing chlorine end up in municipal incinerators. 

 

• 2004: We install our second cogeneration turbine at Waxdale, using clean-burning natural gas to generate electricity. With our first cogeneration turbine, this allows us to generate 85% of Waxdale’s energy needs.

 

• 2006: In recognition of our Greenlist™ program and commitment to responsible ingredient choices, SC Johnson receives both the Ron Brown Award and the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award. 

 

• 2008: We’re recognized with the U.S. EPA Safer Detergents Stewardship Initiative (SDSI) Award for eliminating all nonylphenol ethoxylate surfactant from our products.

 

• 2009: SC Johnson takes the lead on ingredient transparency within our industry, launching a website to list U.S. product ingredients including specific dyes. Today the site serves consumers everywhere around the world who use our products. 

 

• 2011: We launch Windex® Mini concentrated cleaner to help drive dialogue about concentrated cleaner refills and the potential to reduce waste going to landfills. In 2012, we expand our concentrated cleaner program with more brands and new easy-to-recycle packaging. 

 

• 2012: The United Nations and Foundation for Social Change honor SC Johnson as global Leader of Change.

 

• 2012: SC Johnson powers up two 415-foot-tall wind turbines at our largest global manufacturing facility, enabling the facility to produce an average of 100 percent of our electrical energy onsite.

 

• 2013: We launch Ziploc® brand compostable bags (Online Only) to encourage use of commercial composting to reduce landfill waste. The bags are designed for commercial composting.

 

• 2014: We’re honored with a SmartWay® Excellence Award from the U.S. EPA for the third consecutive year.

 

• 2015: For a second time, SC Johnson receives the prestigious World Environment Center Gold Medal for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development.

 

• 2016: After years of advocating for chemical reform in the United States, SC Johnson is honored to be mentioned by name by U.S. President Barack Obama as he signs new legislation that raises the standard for all companies.

 

• 2016: We receive the 2016 Western Hemisphere Corporate Citizenship Award from the Association of American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America & the Caribbean (AACCLA) for our “SCJ Recycles” program in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay.

 

• 2016: Expanded our product transparency program to 30 countries across Europe, increasing our transparency to nearly 3,000 products and providing information in 20 languages.

 

• 2017: Expanded our ingredient transparency program to 20 countries across Asia Pacific, increasing our transparency to more than 5,300 products and providing information in 34 languages.
  
  

• 2017: SC Johnson reaches another milestone in our efforts to reduce GHG emissions, with a third manufacturing site now running on 100% wind energy.

 

• 2017: We partner with Conservation International to complete the largest-ever acre-for-acre match program to conserve the Amazon rainforest.

 

• 2018: As part of our commitment to reduce plastic waste, SCJ signed the Ellen MacArthur Global Commitment, aimed at increasing our use of recycled content and redesigning our packaging to be recyclable or reusable.

 

• 2018: SC Johnson announces a new partnership with Plastic Bank, to address poverty and create a potential supply chain for some of our recycled content that is used to manufacturer some of our bottles. 

 

• 2018: Further increased fragrance transparency by sharing 99.99% of the product formula across our portfolio of brands.

 

• 2019: Expanded our ingredient transparency program to 17 countries across Latin America, increasing our transparency to more than 10,000 products and providing information in 35 languages.

 

• 2019: SC Johnson launches the first bottle (less closures and labels) made with 100% recovered coastal plastic, post-consumer recycled plastic from a major home cleaning brand.
  • *Recovered coastal plastic is plastic collected on land within 50k, of an ocean so that it does not reach oceans or landfills*

 

• 2019: SC Johnson expands concentrated refills to e-commerce and more markets to support reuse of bottles and reduce waste.

 

• 2020: SC Johnson and the Milwaukee Brewers Team Up to Take on Plastic Waste
  • SC Johnson and the Milwaukee Brewers announced a first-of-its kind partnership beginning with the 2020 season to provide a local solution toward the global crisis of plastic waste through creating a recycling model for one of the biggest sources of waste at American Family Field. PET plastic cups used at the ballpark are collected in specially marked receptacles and are upcycled into packaging for SC Johnson’s Scrubbing Bubbles® product which will be sold to local consumers. These product bottles can also be recycled when emptied. SC Johnson and The Brewers, together with EarthEcho International, provide sustainability education, including ways to reduce, reuse and recycle plastic waste, to schools throughout Southeast Wisconsin.

 

• 2021: Milwaukee Bucks and SC Johnson Partner to Expand Sustainability Efforts at Fiserv Forum
  • SC Johnson and the Milwaukee Bucks announced that they are working together to collect and recycle plastic cups and clean plastic beverage bottles used at games and events at Fiserv Forum. All the plastic collected will be recycled the into SC Johnson consumer product bottles (excluding trigger and label), including Scrubbing Bubbles® bottles. These product bottles can also be recycled when emptied. SC Johnson and the Bucks work to educate fans on the benefits of reduce, reuse and recycle with respect to plastics in their daily lives as well as Bucks games and other events at Fiserv Forum.

 

• 2021: SC Johnson and Liverpool Football Club Score with Plastic Reuse Partnership to Tackle Plastic Waste!
  • SC Johnson announces partnership with Liverpool Football Club (LFC) to recycle plastic beverage bottles used at LFC’s Anfield stadium. Fans deposit their plastic beverage bottles in specially designed receptables. The bottles will then be upcycled into SC Johnson consumer products, including Mr Muscle® bottles. These product bottles can also be recycled when emptied. Not only does this partnership allow fans to make a hands-on impact, but it also aims to raise awareness about recycling. 

 

• 2021: SC Johnson launches The Blue Paradox in London.
  • The immersive pop-up experience in London helped make the ocean plastic crisis – and the collective actions needed to address it – relevant and relatable to everyone. 
  • The high-demand, sold-out event struck a nerve with Londoners, with 97 percent of attendees saying they planned to change their behavior for good.

 

• 2022: SC Johnson announced the launch of DISSOLVE™ Concentrated Pods in its Windex®, Scrubbing Bubbles® brands in the U.S. 

 

• 2022: SC Johnson launches Ziploc® Endurables™ 
  • Made with durable and reusable platinum silicone, Ziploc® Endurables™ can be used and reused again and again.

 

• 2022: SC Johnson inducted into Climate Leadership Hall of Fame.
  

 

• 2023: SC Johnson launches The Blue Paradox in Chicago.
  • Inspired by the reaction to the exhibit in London, SC Johnson partnered with The Museum of Science and Industry to bring the experience to a world-class museum in the U.S

 

• 2023: Windex® Original, Vinegar, Ammonia-Free spray bottles and Vinegar refills are made of 100% Recovered Coastal Plastic,*reducing SC Johnson's reliance on virgin plastics.

 

• 2024: method® unveils new, clear bottles in North America, made entirely from 100% recycled recovered coastal plastic sourced through SC Johnson's partnership with Plastic Bank®.