Essity is formerly a part of the SCA group. SCA was founded in 1929 as a forestry company. In 1975, SCA acquired Mölnlycke AB, a western European producer of disposable hygiene products. In 1995 they acquired the German paper and packaging company PWA. In 2001 the division Wisconsin Tissue of the United States company Georgia-Pacific Tissue was acquired. In 2004 SCA acquired the tissue and hygiene products businesses of Carter Holt Harvey from International Paper. In 2007, Procter & Gamble sold their European tissue business to SCA for EUR 512 million. In 2007 SCA acquired its first minority share in the Asian tissue company Vinda. In 2011, it acquired the Brazilian Pro Descart for about R $ 114 million reais, with local brands "Biofral" and "Drybaby". Later, it invested R $ 242 million in a plant in Jarinu, in the interior of São Paulo, consolidating the brands TENA and Tork. In July 2012, the acquisition of Georgia Pacific's tissue operations, including the brand Lotus, was closed. The total price amounted to EUR 1.32 billion. In 2013 SCA became majority shareholder in Vinda. In 2015, SCA was the largest producer of tissue paper in the world. In August 2015 it was announced that SCA's hygiene operations and forestry operations will be divided into two different divisions. A year later, 24 August 2016, the company announced that it intended to split the SCA in two listed companies. In December 2016 SCA announced the acquisition of BSN Medical, a company specializing in the areas of Compression Therapy, Wound Care and Orthopaedics. The purchase price amounted to EUR 2 740 million and included brands such as Jobst, Leukoplast, Cutimed, Delta Cast and Actimove. In 2017, SCA split off Essity as a separate company, and Essity listed at the Stock Exchange in Stockholm on June 15, 2017.
Essity is amongst the top 50 largest FMCG/Consumer goods companies in the world and some of its competitors are Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Georgia-Pacific, Kimberly-Clark, Sofidel, Unicharm Ontex,CMPC, Santher and 3M.
Sustainability
Essity has, as of December 2018, had its Science-Based Target for its emissions reduction in line with climate science approved. Essity has qualified for inclusion in both the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and the Dow Jones Sustainability Europe Index, and has also been named industry leader in the Household Products sector. Essity's is an active member within the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's plastics initiative “New Plastic Economy” and has committed to sustainability targets for packaging, for example that 85% of the company's packaging is to be manufactured from renewable or recycled material by 2025.
Criticism
Along with its supplier SCA, Essity was accused by Greenpeace of promoting unsustainable business practices aggravating Global warming and mass extinction. Greenpeace claim that Essity "clearcuts some of Sweden’s last remaining old-growth forests, wiping away habitats of threatened species and endangering the livelihood of indigenous communities".
