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Killer Quote: " What I find amazing and actually just a great reflection of our industry is that we are in a global industry, and people are interested in listening and learning from each other in this global marketplace." —Victoria Meyer
Welcome to The Chemical Show™, where chemicals mean business. If you're looking for insights from business leaders of mid-market to Fortune 50 companies, this is the place to be.
Featuring interviews with industry executives, you’ll hear about the key trends impacting chemicals and plastics today: growth, sustainability, innovation, business transformation, digitalization, supply chain, talent, strategic marketing, customer experience and much more.
Episodes are published every Tuesday.
Host Victoria Meyer gained her industry experience at leading companies, including Shell, LyondellBasell and Clariant. Before taking those insights and experiences to launch a strategy & marketing consultancy, Progressio Global, and The Chemical Show podcast. Victoria brings a informed and engaging perspective, making this podcast not just about the chemical business, but about people, leadership, business challenges and opportunities, and so much more.
The Chemical Show brings you the latest insights into trillion-dollar chemical industry. You will hear from leading industry executives as they discuss their companies, business, markets, and leadership. You’ll learn how chemical, specialty chemical, petrochemical, material science and plastics companies are making an impact, responding to the changing business environment, and discussing best practices and approaches you can apply in your business.
This podcast is a must-listen for executives and business leader everywhere, leading B2B process businesses and industries, driving strategy, harnessing customers and suppliers, and driving business innovation.
A key component of the modern
world economy, the chemical
industry delivers products and
innovations to enhance everyday life.
It is also an industry in transformation
where chemical executives and
workers are delivering growth and
industry changing advancements while
responding to pressures from investors,
regulators, and public opinion.
Discover how leading companies
are approaching these challenges
here on the chemical show.
Join Victoria Meyer, president
of Progressio Global and
host of the chemical show.
As she speaks with executives across the
industry and learns how they are leading
their companies to grow, transform, and
push industry boundaries on all frontiers.
Here's your host, Victoria Meyer.
Victoria: Hi, this is Victoria Meyer.
Welcome back to the Chemical Show,
where chemicals means business.
Today, I am at HCPA, the Household and
Consumer Products Association, and I am
speaking with Greg Adamson, who is the
Senior VP of Government Affairs, Product
Stewardship, and Sustainability at Jvaden.
Um, And we're going to just
be talking about Javadin.
We're going to talk about
Greg and we're going to talk
about their role here at HCPA.
Thanks for joining me today.
Greg: It's a pleasure.
Victoria: So tell me a little bit
about yourself and how you got
into this world of regulations
and product stewardship and more.
Greg: you know, I'd like to tell you
that it was a conscious choice from
when I was a baby, but I'd be lying.
Um, so a little bit about me.
I'm a, by training, I'm
a toxicologist, so I'm.
trained in the art of the science of
poisons and preventing adverse effects
of drugs, chemicals, and other things.
Started out in Australia working and
training and somebody said to me, I
should come to the United States to get
some experience on the industrial side.
So I came over here and I started
in the biotech industry in
San Francisco, with Genentech.
And.
Um, but it was a short term contract,
and things were going well, things didn't
seem to be quite as interesting back in my
homeland, and I went to P& G, they picked
me up, worked for them for 10 years in
varying degrees of different roles, and
I at that point was starting to get into
more regulatory, but a lot of toxicology,
and I realized that I wanted to broaden
my horizons, because What I do in
toxicology underlies all of the regulatory
things that we have to maintain.
Victoria: Awesome.
Greg: So I thought it was a good
build, and at that point Avon
Products asked me to run their
regulatory and product safety=
globally for their R& D organization.
So I moved to the east coast which
is where I've, you know, been and
then finally I moved to Giverdon.
Um, and, uh, spent three years
in Europe with them and then came
back, um, as the global head of
regulatory and product safety here.
Victoria: tell us a little bit
about Givaudan because people
may not be fully familiar.
Greg: Yes, so Givadon
Victoria: Nice.
Greg: Yeah so Givedon has
two main product areas.
We make flavors and taste solutions
for all types of foods, beverages,
snacks.
And then we have a fragrance
division which designs all of the
fragrances that you might like.
We like to say that you've probably
experienced us 29 times today already
and you didn't know it because we make
all the fragrances that go into those
iconic products that everybody loves.
So you think of fine fragrances
like J'adore and Chanel No.
5, but that's actually only
a small part of what we do.
We make, um, fragrances that go into
the detergents, the cleaners, the air
care products that make the home smell
nice, hygienic, the, the cleaning
products, those types of things, and
then we also make cosmetic ingredients.
So, and we're based out of Geneva,
global company, we're nudging
almost 8 billion now, Swiss francs.
So, uh, it's a pretty, it's
been a pretty fun ride, and I've
been there for 18 odd years.
Victoria: Yeah, that's wild.
Um, and, and actually eight, almost
8 billion, uh, Swiss francs, I
guess, is, is where you're at.
on products that are probably tiny
in the final finished product.
that true?
Greg: Yes.
You know, one of the things that people
don't understand when you can taste
something or smell something, you think
that there's a lot of it, um, in the food.
So a classic, uh, classic story
is we make the, uh, the chicken
flavor for chicken noodle soup.
We've done that for many, many years.
I think there was actually a
60 minutes, uh, story about it.
But the amount of flavor in the chicken
noodle soup is microscopic compared
to the rest of, so it's maybe 0.
1 percent or less in
the chicken noodle soup.
And it's the same for fragrance
because the materials we use are
extremely strong and so we don't need
much of them to give that benefit.
(V) Interesting.
So then what your tie to HCPA?
V So why
Victoria: we
Greg: we been at H.
C.
P.
A.
In fact, jive it on around the world is
member of trade associations all over the
world because we we need to be involved
in the evolution of regulations and
managing the changes that we see that
that are constantly striving to make
sure our industry is safe and effective.
Um, so we have two missions.
One is to be a good industrial steward
to make sure that we continue to make
our industry as well as ourselves a
strong citizen of the industry, um,
to make sure products are safe to help
the industry maintain that reputation.
So H.
C.
P.
A.
is one vehicle to do that, but
importantly, it's also a vehicle
to help us with the rest of
the industry when we need to.
I would say influence in a
positive direction, things that
are happening to make sure we have
viable industry going forward.
sense.
Um, and
Victoria: you think about H.
C.
P.
A.
We've I've been having conversations
and have been, uh, you know, sitting
in in some of the sessions and having
conversations which will be going out on
the chemical show, how does, what are the
priorities that are critical to Jevedon,
Greg: the priorities for us.
Um, I think for specifically for H.
C.
P.
A.
Um, really trying to get the E.
P.
A.
And new chemicals into a better shape.
It really is at a point where we see that
there is an inhibition of innovation.
Uh, that's resulted from a
very, I would say, um, poorly
operating, uh, regulatory area.
Um, and we've been trying to
work with the EPA on reforms to
help make that more productive.
So that is one priority.
And it's it's a long range
priority in the fragrance area.
We have a specific discussion
with the EPA about that as well.
So that's one key priority.
But I would say the bigger priority is
overall product stewardship of chemicals.
And we see because of what has happened
over many years, there's gridlock in D.
C.
Uh, part of why we see this change of
administration now, but we see a big
increase in state based legislation
and activity, which is not helpful
because it's a patchwork quilt of
different things, making it very
complex for industry to manage very
difficult to administer, and overall
raises the cost of doing business.
So that's our other priority is
really to help try and strive for
national standardized regulations to,
to enable states to feel comfortable
and not have to do their own thing.
Victoria: and I think that's important.
And I think about Jividen as a
global company, you're navigating
a lot of global regulations.
So, uh, there is a certain ease if we had
just a single regulation across the U.
S.
And I know we're doing a lot of
things, as you've already pointed
out, patchwork and state by state.
But how does, how does, uh,
Jividen think about this globally?
So,
Greg: So at a global level, I would
say what we see is that there is
a tendency to, to be moving to
the most restrictive standard.
Europe has been on a long running,
uh, very sort of sustainable platform
called the Green Deal for chemicals.
Um, which is not necessarily, uh, The
way it's being executed, and we see that
we see that migrating into regulators
and legislators offices here in the U.
S.
Um, because if people view it as a gold
standard, then why not bring it here?
Same in other countries.
Other countries are also
setting up their own.
Policies what we would like to see
is commonality across the globe.
Um, we recognize there's a need
for control and good regulation But
having everything done differently
is tremendously complicated And
today it's a very complex world.
So we're in each of the countries
that we operate in Doing the same
thing trying to make sure legislators
understand what's really needed
showing that industry is under good
control Not getting disproportionate
regulation And trying to make it better
As uniform as we can around the world.
Right.
Victoria: And obviously that uniformity.
It creates more reliability, creates
simplicity, it becomes easier to
produce the right products, um, and
it also simplifies business in many
Greg: you know,
Victoria: so, that may be a bit of
nirvana, because I think a lot of people
are hoping for that, but, you know, the
which standard to follow is a tricky one.
Greg: That's right.
And if it weren't that, you
probably wouldn't be talking to
me because companies wouldn't
need to manage the complexity with
people who are doing what I do
Victoria: So there's a bit of job security
Greg: Could be.
Could be.
Victoria: So you talked about the
microscopic quantities of, of your
products that go into final formulations.
And what strikes me with this is
navigating this is a challenge, right?
Because often, and this is a conversation
we've, I've had, throughout the
years, the recognition of hazard
versus risk is not well understood.
Um, the impacts of of dividends products
at these microscopic levels are not
the same as it would be if they were
going in a much larger qualities.
How do you, how do you
navigate through that?
Mhm.
Greg: and the second one is, is
demonstrating the safe, the safe use.
Um, in the, particularly in the
fragrance space, but also in, in
the, the taste and flavor space,
most of the materials that we use
and produce, uh, coming from nature.
So we will find those natural materials in
foods, in plants, and we will copy them.
So we can mass produce them for
the use in fragrance and flavor
without destroying crops, you know,
um, native heritage and so on.
So educating regulators, educating
stakeholders in understanding, first
of all, what we're doing, which is
quite unique in the, I would say, the
chemical space is these are, a lot
of these materials are, Uh, in your
everyday lives without us, if you like
smelling plants, if you if you have pot
plants, if you have a garden, if you like
flowers, you're already getting exposed.
If you're eating fruits and vegetables,
you're already getting exposed.
So educating people.
That in fact we're not doing much
different to what they already have.
Then it comes down to how is it
being used and what data do we have.
And as you say, we use very low levels.
And those tiny levels present no
risk for consumers in the, in the
way they're intended to be used in
the products that they're being used.
However, when it comes
to hazard versus risk.
Hazard means that you define
that something could be
at some level, but you never talk about
how it's being used or at what level.
It's simply, well, it's toxic.
It's a little bit like
the lion could eat you.
But what's the chance of the lion
eating you if there is no lion
in the room, or if the lion is
in the room but it's in a cage?
There is no chance of
being injured by the lion.
You've got to get the practical
understanding of how the
product's being used, not just,
oh, well, it could eat you.
Victoria: Right.
Yeah.
Greg: and stakeholders understand that.
as toxicologists, which is my, you know,
and there's thousands of people like me
who dedicate their lives to that science.
That's the goal is to make sure
we are not killing our consumers.
There's no benefit to killing
a consumer because they won't
buy more of our product.
So you want to make sure they're
healthy and happy and, and using,
Chemicals in the right way.
Yes, in the past, certainly we've,
you know, we've developed science
and, you know, things have evolved.
But today I would say we're very
sophisticated, very capable to do that.
But we have to educate people to show
them we really have a good foundation.
Well, one
Victoria: the analogies I always, I use
with people when they start talking about
hazards, I'm like, water is hazardous.
And yet.
We need to consume water.
We can bathe in water safely.
We can go swimming in water and yet
you can also drown in water, right?
So understanding the appropriate use
the safeguards around that becomes
really critical Yeah, let's talk
about leadership You've obviously you
work with a lot of great leaders you
yourself have achieved a great level
of leadership in your career What do
you find to be critical if somebody
was going to replicate your success?
What advice do you have?
So I
Greg: So, I would say the, the
biggest thing about leadership
for me is leadership is not a job.
It's a lifestyle.
Um, leadership is about, A passionate
engagement that is authentic and that
you, you spend a lot of time with your
organization and people to understand
what they need, understand also where
the organization and the business is
going and that you are able to, from
a visionary perspective, Take them on
a journey that is hopefully aligned
with the organization, but doing
it in a way that's very supportive.
In our area of regulatory affairs, often
we can be perceived as a break or a,
you know, a policeman, kind of the old,
the old analogy of regulatory affairs.
Today, we're an enabler and we're a
partner to the business to, to help
them navigate into new product areas,
Open up new markets, put product and
licenses to give access to markets.
So we're very, very strategically
aligned with the business.
And, and for those companies that use
regulatory affairs in that way, we'll
be very successful in the future.
So, you know, I think that's where.
That's where it's, you know,
it takes strong leadership,
which is about communicating.
It's about, it's about relating to the
environment you're in learning, not to
just be a toxicologist, but learning
to be a businessman, learning to be a
salesman, learning to be a marketer,
talking in that language, helping people
understand and translate what we do
into something that's of value to them.
That's great.
for joining me today.
I
Victoria: for joining me today.
I appreciate it.
Greg: was a pleasure.
Absolutely.
Victoria: Absolutely.
And thanks everyone for joining
us today on The Chemical Show.
Keep listening, keep following,
keep sharing, and we will
talk with you again soon.
Thanks.