Jason Keiper on sustainable product design

About Jason Keiper

Jason Keiper, Vice President and Chief Technology & Sustainability Officer at Stepan Company, discussed the company's sustainability efforts during a September 2021 Emory Climate Talks event. He stated that specialty chemicals companies like Stepan have "unique opportunities and challenges to influence sustainability both upstream and downstream" due to their position in the chemical value chain. Keiper described the development of concentrated fabric softener products that reduce water content by over five times, which he said could lead to reductions in plastic packaging, fuel use for shipping, and water consumption. He also noted a partnership with Henkel to produce a bio-based, vegan-certified fabric softener, and mentioned Stepan's creation of a "biorenewable carbon index" to quantify bio-based carbon content in products. Keiper addressed broader industry challenges, stating that the chemical industry is a "significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions" and that addressing emissions requires a "holistic view beyond just stack emissions." He discussed Stepan's production of polyester polyols used in insulation products, which he said can enable up to 30% energy reduction)Skip. He also noted that scaling biosurfactants like rhamnolipids cost-effectively while maintaining performance remains a challenge, and that tracking greenhouse gas emissions across global operations is complex due to varying taxation regimes and data challenges.

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