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Swiss detergents and cleaning products industry: excellence and innovation in the world of cleanliness and hygiene

Detergents and cleaning products are an essential part of everyday life in Switzerland, as well as in trade and industry.

After the First World War, the globalisation of the consumer goods market prompted Swiss soap and detergent manufacturers to focus on the production of niche products. Today, the detergents and cleaning products industry generates annual sales of CHF 712 million (as at 2023).

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Palm oil and other sustainability issues

Many Swiss companies have long been committed to comprehensive sustainability.

It is not yet possible to eliminate palm oil completely. This is because all detergents and cleaning products contain surfactants, which are generally derived from palm oil. Oil palms produce an unrivalled average of 3.3 tonnes per hectare, compared to 0.7 tonnes per hectare for indigenous rapeseed and sunflower oil. As a result, the industry is focusing on Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certified palm oil and products made from Swiss raw materials.

But palm oil is just one aspect of many. Four key areas contribute to a sustainable industry:

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Thanks to perseverance and traditional inventiveness, many Swiss products continue to be manufactured successfully – for Swiss and international customers.

 

The products are innovative, and the areas of application are many and varied:

  • Dishwashing and kitchen hygiene
  • Textile cleaning and care
  • Commercial property and building cleaning
  • Production facility cleaning
  • Personal hygiene
  • Disinfection
  • Road and rail vehicle cleaning

 

The roles of the SKW and its members

 

We maintain constant communication with our members through our technical committees and expert groups. In addition to national and international networking, we analyse legal aspects, such as changes in chemical and environmental legislation, and are part of the Packaging and Environment Expert Team, to name but a few of our activities.

The aim is to continually optimise and improve innovation, regulation and sustainability to meet or, where possible, exceed the industry's ambitious targets.

 

Introducing: Insights into the everyday life of our members

Facts and figures on the Swiss detergent and cleaning products sector

The figures below are the product of a collaboration with NielsenIQ (Switzerland) and repre-sent the entire Swiss detergent and cleaning products market. They are extrapolated using Nielsen Retail and Prestige Panel scanning data. There may be some discrepancies in the total due to the rounding of the product category figures.

Sales in CHF mn 2021 2022 2023
(Consumer prices) CHF CHF CHF
Liquid detergents 127.9 119.4 123.3
Powder detergents & other 72.6 74.1 80.5
Softeners 46.7 45.6 49.7
Special products 63.2 60.0 58.5
Washing up liquid 155.7 139.6 140.8
Cleaning agents 279.0 257.7 260.1
Total 745.1 696.4 712.9

Share of market sectors 20223