Henkel Adhesive Technologies (Düsseldorf, Germany; www.henkel.com) and Dow (Midland, Mich.; www.dow.com) have expanded their long-standing strategic partnership to accelerate decarbonization in adhesives manufacturing across technologies. As a first step, low-carbon feedstocks and renewable electricity will be introduced into Henkel’s hot melt adhesive production processes contributing to a product carbon footprint reduction between 20 and 40 percent depending on the individual product line.
Building on a long-lasting innovation partnership, this effort will support Henkel’s focus on SBTi relevant carbon-emission reduction starting in the hot melt portfolio serving the packaging and consumer goods adhesives industry.
“Our collaboration reflects Henkel’s ambition to drive meaningful change in industrial sustainability,” said Jenna Koenneke, Sustainability Director at Henkel Adhesive Technologies. “By integrating low-carbon materials and process-emission reduction levers like renewable electricity, we continue to set a precedent for how value chain partnerships can accelerate sustainability.”
Early implementation of these projects is already showing positive impact, with selected hot melt adhesive technologies achieving improved emission profiles. These results form part of a larger strategy to scale low-carbon solutions across Henkel’s adhesives portfolio in combination with Dow’s materials science innovations.
“This collaboration demonstrates the demand for low carbon products in the market and the ambition to increase the investments needed to help the industry and value chain reach their net zero goals. We are proud to continue on this journey with Henkel,” said Peter Sandkuehler, Senior Business Sustainability Director at Dow.
Initially focused on materials supplied to Henkel in Europe, the program is slated for expansion to North America. The collaboration aligns with Henkel’s climate commitments to reduce Scope 3 emission by 30% in 2030 and 90% in 2045 [1] and supports Dow’s strategy to decarbonize and grow.
Henkel and Dow will showcase their progress at K2025 in Düsseldorf, where they will host a joint Transformation Talk, “Success story: Reducing product carbon footprint in practice” on October 9 at 14:00 CET on the Dow booth in Hall in Dow building 04.1 outside of Hall 4. The session will explore how collaboration across the value chain can enable scalable climate solutions.
The announcement is part of a broader series of sustainability activations from Henkel and its partners to highlight innovation, collaboration, and climate leadership across regions.
- The target boundary includes biogenic land-related emissions and removals from bioenergy feedstocks.