Delivering a healthy and resilient Europe through innovative, safe and sustainable solutions: An industry perspective

Europe is undergoing profound geopolitical, economic and societal transformation. As policymakers seek to strengthen competitiveness, resilience and sustainability, industries are increasingly expected to demonstrate their contribution to Europe’s strategic priorities.

The cleaning and hygiene products industry is no exception. Often taken for granted, it plays a fundamental role in protecting public health, improving quality of life and enabling countless economic activities. Every day, cleaning and hygiene products help remove dirt, reduce contamination risks, support disinfection, protect materials and maintain the environments in which people live, work, travel, receive care and produce essential goods.

The industry is now operating in a more demanding environment. Companies need to keep products safe, effective and available, while reducing environmental impact, improving packaging, providing clearer information and complying to a growing body of European legislation. These are legitimate expectations. What matters now is implementation: rules need to be clear, science-based and workable, so that companies can keep improving products without compromising the safety and performance that consumers and professional users rely on.

For a sector built on formulation science, product safety, performance and consumer use, this is a practical challenge. Europe’s ambitions on sustainability, resilience and competitiveness will depend on its ability to turn policy objectives into workable solutions across real products, real supply chains and real use conditions.

A strategic European industry

Detergents Europe, formerly A.I.S.E., represents the European cleaning and hygiene products industry. The sector covers a wide range of consumer products, including laundry detergents, dishwashing products, surface care, toilet care, bleaches and maintenance products. It also includes disinfectants and professional cleaning and hygiene solutions for customers with unique operational demands in a wide variety of institutional and industrial situations: healthcare, food production, hospitality, transport, professional laundry, pharmaceutical production, cleanrooms, manufacturing and other high-dependency environments.

This makes the industry both an everyday consumer-facing sector and a strategic manufacturing ecosystem. The industry represents an estimated €50 billion market value, supports around 360,000 jobs across its value chain, including 95,000 direct jobs, and operates through approximately 700 manufacturing facilities across Europe, of which 85% are operated by SMEs (1).

This footprint matters as Europe renews its focus on industrial resilience, supply-chain security and strategic manufacturing capacity. Cleaning and hygiene products depend on access to ingredients, chemicals, packaging, energy, transport and skilled production. Disruption in any part of that chain can affect the availability of products that citizens and professionals rely on every day.

Hygiene and public health

The role of hygiene extends far beyond cleanliness alone and is not delivered by one product category or one setting. In the home, it may mean clean laundry or safe kitchen surfaces. In food production, it depends on cleaning and sanitation systems that help prevent contamination. In industrial and pharmaceutical settings, it can involve highly controlled cleaning processes designed to protect product quality, equipment and workers. Repellents can also contribute to prevention where vector-borne diseases such as dengue or West Nile virus are a concern.

In healthcare, hygiene also depends on daily prevention: hand hygiene, surface disinfection, safe cleaning procedures and infection prevention and control. Healthcare-associated infections show why this matters. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) estimates that more than 3.5 million healthcare-associated infections occur in the EU/EEA each year, leading to more than 90,000 deaths. ECDC also notes that up to 50% of these infections are estimated to be preventable (2). The World Health Organization (WHO) similarly stresses that most healthcare-associated infections are preventable when hand hygiene is performed at the right times, and that hand hygiene improvement programmes can prevent up to 50% of avoidable infections acquired during healthcare delivery (3).

Prevention needs products, procedures and habits that work in practice. Hygiene products do not replace healthcare systems, but they help those systems function more safely. In addition, climate change is leading to changing disease patterns, putting more pressure on prevention systems. Hygiene remains a vital component of Europe’s ability to respond to climate change disruption.

Innovation and sustainability in practice

Innovation has always been central to this sector. Manufacturers continuously improve formulations, ingredients, packaging and user information to deliver reliable performance with lower environmental impacts. Today, innovation is increasingly focused on contributing to Europe’s sustainability objectives. Across the industry, this means doing more with less: from resource-efficient products and packaging solutions to advances in formulation science, biotechnology and digitalisation, companies are seeking ways to reduce the overall environmental footprint while maintaining the highest standards of hygiene, safety and effectiveness that consumers and professional users expect to rely on.

Voluntary industry action can support that transition when it is measurable, transparent and credible. The industry’s Charter for Sustainable Cleaning is one example. It is a voluntary initiative that helps companies deliver sustainability improvements and promotes more sustainable ways of carrying out washing, cleaning and household maintenance (4).

The Charter provides a lifecycle-based sustainability framework, from raw material sourcing to packaging end-of-life. It includes company sustainability requirements and product-related criteria, which are regularly reviewed to reflect scientific developments and evolving sustainability priorities. Through participation, companies demonstrate their sustainability commitment while contributing to collective monitoring and reporting of sector progress.

The Charter has included independently verified annual key performance indictors (KPI) reporting since 2005 and now brings together more than 180 participating organisations covering most of the European market. The figures show how far the sector has come. Since the beginning of KPI reporting, CO2 emission intensity has fallen from 80.9 kg per tonne of production to 23.2 kg per tonne, representing a reduction of around 71%. Energy consumption intensity has declined by 56%, while water use has decreased by 23%.

The industry’s commitment to people is reflected in significant improvements in occupational safety. During the same period, accident frequency has been reduced by approximately 49%. Packaging indicators measured since 2019 also demonstrate important progress. Recycled plastic content in packaging has increased from 8.5% to 35.2%, while the proportion of packaging that is recyclable, reusable or compostable has increased from 80.7% to 89%.

These figures show that sustainability improvements can be measured, independently reviewed and continuously improved across a complex industrial ecosystem. However, progress on sustainability is only one part of the picture. The environment in which these innovations take place is also changing rapidly, driven by an expanding body of European legislation that shapes how products are designed, manufactured and marketed today and in the years ahead.

Navigating a changing policy landscape

Alongside technological and sustainability developments, the industry’s operating environment is being reshaped by a far-reaching wave of new and revised EU legislation. With competitiveness and simplification now at the centre of the European Commission’s agenda, the way these policies are implemented will be just as important as their objectives.

The recently revised Detergents Regulation represents a major milestone for the sector, modernising the legislative framework governing detergents and cleaning products and creating the basis for future secondary legislation and implementation measures (5). Successful implementation will require close cooperation between regulators and industry to ensure that new requirements remain effective, workable and innovation friendly.

Packaging is another important area. The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will drive new approaches to packaging circularity and waste reduction, requiring significant investment and adaptation across value chains (6).

The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is establishing a framework likely to influence future sustainability requirements across product categories (7). While detergents are not currently included in the first work programme, the regulation is expected to shape future discussions on product sustainability, digital product information and environmental performance.

At the same time, a new EU Ecolabel for detergents will mark an important milestone for one of Europe’s most recognised voluntary environmental certification schemes. The revised criteria reflect evolving sustainability priorities and scientific developments while continuing to recognise products that achieve high environmental performance (8). For the cleaning and hygiene products industry, the new Ecolabel framework provides both a benchmark for environmental excellence and valuable insight into the future direction of product sustainability policy.

The industry must also adapt to changes arising from the revision of the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation, while looking ahead to future initiatives such as the Circular Economy Act and Biotech Act II, both of which have the potential to create new opportunities for innovation, sustainability and competitiveness.

Each of these initiatives pursues legitimate policy objectives. Yet their combined impact highlights the importance of regulatory coherence. Effective legislation must provide clear signals to investors, avoid unnecessary administrative burdens and create conditions that encourage innovation rather than constrain it. Research, development and commercialisation often require long-term horizons, making predictability and consistency essential.

Partnering with policymakers

Industry has a responsibility to comply with legislation and to contribute constructively to policy development. The sector’s expertise in product design, chemistry, manufacturing, consumer behaviour and sustainability can help ensure policy objectives are translated into effective and workable solutions.

Science must remain at the centre of this process. Risk-based decision-making, robust evidence and transparent dialogue provide the strongest foundation for policies that simultaneously advance environmental objectives, protect consumers and support competitiveness.

Neither industry nor regulators can achieve these objectives alone. Partnership between industry and policymakers will become increasingly important as Europe seeks to reconcile competitiveness, sustainability and resilience. Achieving these objectives requires a shared commitment to practical, science-based solutions that can be implemented effectively throughout complex value chains.

A recent example is Detergents Europe’s “Hands Up for Ethanol” campaign, which was awarded Best EU Public Affairs Campaign 2026 at the Best in Brussels Awards. The campaign focused on the continued availability of ethanol, an essential ingredient in disinfectant products used to protect public health. It brings together more than 1,200 signatories from all EU Member States and over 20 sectors, including scientists, healthcare professionals, industry representatives and other stakeholders (9, 10).

Evidence, coalition-building and clear communication can help policymakers consider real-world exposure, public-health needs and proportionality when dealing with complex regulatory questions. For a sector operating at the intersection of chemistry, hygiene, public health and sustainability, that kind of science-based engagement will become increasingly important.

Turning ambition into practical agenda

Europe’s future resilience will depend on stronger prevention systems. Climate change, pressure on resources and the wider spread of infectious diseases are putting new pressure on public-health systems, food production, workplaces, transport and shared spaces. Hygiene, cleaning and disinfection will not solve these challenges alone, but they are part of the practical infrastructure that helps society prepare, respond and keep functioning.

For the cleaning and hygiene products industry, this means keeping improving: safer products, better performance, lower environmental impact, clearer information and more efficient use of resources. The sector has shown, including through the Charter for Sustainable Cleaning, that progress can be measured and improved over time. The European Union now needs a policy framework that allows that progress to continue at scale.

Europe’s objectives are ambitious, and rightly so. The challenge now is to translate those ambitions into practical solutions that deliver environmental progress, support innovation and maintain industrial competitiveness. That balance is essential for Europe to strengthen both its sustainability credentials and its industrial resilience in the years ahead.

Detergents Europe will continue to bring the sector’s scientific expertise and practical experience into the policy discussion, working with policymakers and value-chain partners to support clear, proportionate and workable rules. In doing so, our industry will continue to help deliver what Europe needs most: a healthy and resilient Europe through innovative, safe and sustainable solutions.

References and notes

1. Detergents Europe. Facts & figures. Brussels: Detergents Europe; 2026. Available from: https://www.detergentseurope.eu/cleanliness-hygiene/facts-figures/ [accessed 8 July 2026].
2. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Healthcare-associated infections. Stockholm: ECDC; 2026. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/healthcare-associated-infections [accessed 9 July 2026].
3. World Health Organization. Hand hygiene. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2026. Available from: https://www.who.int/teams/integrated-health-services/infection-prevention-control/hand-hygiene [accessed 9 July 2026].
4. Detergents Europe. Charter for Sustainable Cleaning. Brussels: Detergents Europe; 2026. Available from: https://www.detergentseurope.eu/initiatives/charter-for-sustainable-cleaning/ [accessed 8 July 2026].
5. European Parliament and Council. Regulation (EU) 2026/405 on detergents and surfactants, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 648/2004. Official Journal of the European Union; 2026. Available from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2026/405/oj/eng [accessed 8 July 2026].
6. European Parliament and Council. Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste. Official Journal of the European Union; 2025. Available from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/40/oj/eng [accessed 8 July 2026].
7. European Parliament and Council. Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for sustainable products. Official Journal of the European Union; 2024. Available from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1781/oj/eng [accessed 8 July 2026].
8. European Commission. EU Ecolabel – Cleaning. Brussels: European Commission; 2026. Available from: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/circular-economy-topics/eu-ecolabel/product-groups-and-criteria/cleaning_en [accessed 8 July 2026].
9. Detergents Europe. Hands Up for Ethanol wins Best EU Public Affairs Campaign 2026. Brussels: Detergents Europe; 2026. Available from: https://www.detergentseurope.eu/news/hands-up-for-ethanol-wins-best-eu-public-affairs-campaign-2026/ [accessed 9 July 2026].
10. Ethanol: the unseen guardian of public health. HPC Today. 2025;5. Available from: https://tks-hpc.h5mag.com/edit-hpc_today_5_2025/column_laundry_cleaning_-_industry_perspective_-_ethanol_the_unseen_guardian_of_public_health?preview=ae91c7a9-6069 [accessed 9 July 2026].

About Detergents Europe
Detergents Europe (formerly A.I.S.E.) is the voice of the European cleaning and hygiene products industry. Our products and solutions support health, wellbeing and resilience across Europe by ensuring hygiene and cleanliness, enabling effective disinfection, protecting people and materials, and helping create clean, comfortable and welcoming spaces where people can live, work and feel confident every day.
Representing a sector worth almost €50 billion, supporting around 360,000 jobs and spanning over 700 manufacturing sites across Europe, the association brings together industry expertise to advance innovative and sustainable solutions for a cleaner, healthier and more resilient Europe.