Sustainability as a success factor

Only the best is good enough for customers

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estate/stock market/Henkel, Sustainability

Düsseldorf (euro adhoc) - Global competition is posing new challenges
for all market players. In meeting these challenges, it is becoming
increasingly important to combine product performance with
responsibility toward people and the environment. Henkel has already
been working toward achieving sustainable development for more than
130 years. The company sees its sustainability strategy - which
encompasses the entire value chain - as an opportunity to set itself
apart from its competitors and offer added value to customers and
consumers.

"Our customers are appreciative of the fact that we rank among the
pioneers in our sector with respect to sustainability. Today we are
presenting our sustainability performance during the past year
together with our 2008 Annual Report. This underlines the importance
that we attach to sustainability and corporate social
responsibility," explained Henkel CEO Kasper Rorsted at the press
conference on fiscal 2008. "This is because we are convinced that our
continued focus on sustainability will help grow the long-term value
of our company. In challenging economic times, it is more important
than ever to understand that sustainable development is an
opportunity," Rorsted added.

For Henkel, sustainability means meeting the needs of people today,
through its brands and technologies, and as an employer, without
compromising the development opportunities of future generations. All
new products from Henkel therefore contribute to sustainable
development in at least one of its focal areas: energy and climate,
water and wastewater, materials and waste, health and safety, and
social progress. This strategy is proving to be an innovation driver
and is already firmly anchored in the company´s innovation processes.

Through the combination of first-class performance and highest
possible responsibility for people and the environment products from
Henkel set new quality standards. Examples include the newly launched
Terra Activ brand with five household cleaning products. In this
product line, the proportion of ingredients based on renewable raw
materials is 85 percent on average. Or the Eco-Smart refill packs for
Dial liquid soaps in the U.S. market, which use around 67 percent
less plastics than conventional refill bottles. In Tunisia, the
adjustment of the formulation of Nadhif Semi-Automatic to the needs
of semi-automatic washing machines prevents excessive foaming and
enables the foam formed during washing to be rinsed out more easily -
with the same powerful cleaning performance. Through their
exceptionally fast curing, fourth-generation Liofol laminating
adhesives enable an unprecedented standard of safety in flexible
packages, particularly for the food industry.

In addition, social engagement plays an important role in the
company´s corporate culture. It has been a tradition throughout
Henkel´s history and is firmly anchored in its corporate values and
reflected in its daily activities. Henkel Smile provides the umbrella
for the company´s corporate citizenship activities extending beyond
direct business interests.

Ecologically and socially responsible actions also yield economic
benefits. Taking fiscal 2008 as a whole, the increases in the prices
of energy and raw materials reinforce Henkel´s determination to
continue to pursue its company-wide sustainability targets for
reductions in water consumption, energy consumption, and waste by
2012. The current sustainability performance chart for 2004 to 2008
shows that the company is consistently achieving continuous
improvements in its global environmental indicators. Energy
consumption decreased by 11 percent, water consumption by 35 percent,
waste generation by 30 percent, and carbon dioxide emissions by 6
percent. Over the same period, the number of occupational accidents
fell by 63 percent. Innovative issue leadership

In addition to developing new sustainable brands and technologies,
Henkel again took part in various multi-company initiatives in 2008.
For example, to exercise its responsibility even at the early stage
of raw materials used for ingredients, Henkel is involved in the
Round Table for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). This organization
promotes the sustainable production of palm and palm kernel oil and
is an advocate of a certification and marketing model for palm and
palm kernel oil from sustainable cultivation. Henkel was the first
company in the world to purchase palm kernel oil certificates, for
five products of its new Terra Activ household cleaners brand. It is
therefore the first company to help to ensure that palm kernel oil
from sustainably cultivated palm trees enters the supply chain for
the production of surfactants.

The sustainability strategy also includes appropriate communication:
Extensive materials inform customers and consumers how they can help
to conserve resources, protect the climate and avoid waste by using
Henkel´s branded products. With its promise of "Quality &
Responsibility" on all of its laundry detergents and household
cleaners, Henkel aims to make it easier for consumers to reach a
conscientious purchasing decision. Thanks to the added value that the
combination of quality and responsibility offers, they can purchase
better product performance and greater sustainability at the same
time.

In order to measure the contribution of products to climate
protection, experiments are being carried out worldwide to measure
product carbon footprints. This involves determining all greenhouse
gas emissions throughout the entire value chain of a product. Until
now there has been no internationally harmonized method for
determining the carbon footprint of a product. Henkel is therefore
participating in pilot projects on this subject in Germany and the
USA.

Education for sustainable development

In 2008, Henkel initiated a large number of projects and campaigns,
particularly dealing with the theme of "Education for sustainable
development." One example, from Germany, is the Internet portal "Save
your Future." It enables young people to share their ideas on the
subject of sustainability and organize joint actions and events.

In collaboration with the universities of Rostock and Oldenburg in
Germany, Henkel has developed extensive materials as a resource for
teaching chemistry in schools. They include simple and low-cost
experiments on the subject of environmental awareness in relation to
laundry washing. The materials are freely available on the Internet.
They have already been translated into English, and other languages
are planned, as is the international dissemination of the materials
in cooperation with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Henkel reports extensively on sustainability and corporate social
responsibility as well as all rankings and ratings at
www.henkel.com/sustainability.

Photo materials can be found on the Internet at:
http://www.henkel.com/press.

For more than 130 years, Henkel has been a leader with brands and
technologies that make people's lives easier, better and more
beautiful. Henkel operates in three business areas - Home Care,
Personal Care, and Adhesive Technologies - and is ranked among the
Fortune Global 500 companies. More than 60 percent of Henkel´s sales
are in consumer goods, while the industrial business accounts for
almost 40 percent of the company´s total sales. In fiscal 2008,
Henkel generated sales of 14,131 million euros. Our more than 55,000
employees worldwide are dedicated to fulfilling our corporate claim,
"A Brand like a Friend," and ensuring that people in more than 125
countries can trust in brands and technologies from Henkel.

Press contact

Lars Witteck
Dr. Ute Krupp
Phone +49 211 797 - 2606
Phone +49 211 797 - 5641
Fax +49 211 798 - 4040

Henkel AG & Co. KGaA

Head of Corporate Communications:
Ernst Primosch, Corporate Vice President

end of announcement euro adhoc
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ots Originaltext: Henkel AG & Co. KGaA
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Further inquiry note:

Irene Honisch

Assistant Corporate Communications

Tel. +49 211 797 5668

Branche: Consumer Goods
ISIN: DE0006048432
WKN: 604843
Index: DAX, CDAX, HDAX, Prime All Share
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