WHAT IS A WATERLOOP FACTORY?
To implement the Waterloop concept, L’ Oréal uses a two step process. First, industrial processes are optimised to minimise water consumption. Then, a water recycling system is installed with pre-treatment and reprocessing technologies.
A variety of technologies can be used, including ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis and nanofiltration. These technologies allow for the extraction of very high quality water and fully cover the water needed for utilities within the factory.
Rolling out Waterloop factories After the first Waterloop factory was opened in Spain, more facilities were added in Italy, Russia and Belgium in 2018. Libramont in Belgium recycles about 60 million litres of water every year.
Yichang in China followed in 2021 as the first Waterloop factory in North Asia, saving more than 15,000 tonnes of water per year. L’ Oréal’ s first Waterloop in the Americas is in Mexico City, Mexico which is an area with high water stress.