Over the past two decades, the role of wipes in consumers’ lives has gone from an item of convenience to necessity. Additionally, wipes use has expanded into more aspects of daily life from baby care to personal care to cleaning to pet care to more. The rate of new product introductions in the category continues to amaze as companies, both large and small, continue to find new uses for wipes.

At this year’s annual World of Wipes (WOW) conference, the vibrancy of the global wipes market was on full display, attracting nearly 500 business professionals to discuss the many issues influencing today’s wipes market. First and foremost on most people’s minds was sustainability. The influence of the EU Single Use Plastics Directive, as well as the legislation being examined in several U.S. states and Canada, has put the focus on single use wipes and their contributions to marine waste, litter and landfill usage. Already in Europe, wet wipes containing plastics must be labeled as such.

The verdict is still out on how labeling will influence consumer behavior, but retailer actions are already having an impact on wipes design. In the U.K., which incidentally has no legislation concerning plastic-based wipes, several major retailers have already banned the sale of plastic-containing wipes. These stores, like Tesco, Boots and Aldi, have not only reformulated their wipes with alternative materials, they have also pledged to stop selling major brands that contain plastic.

Experts think that major changes in wipes will be influenced not by government legislation but the actions of retailers and brands. Marketing messages, they believe, will go further in changing consumer preferences and wipes
manufacturers are already examining new and innovative ways to develop their products.
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Karen McIntyre
Editor
[email protected]