Unilever 2009 Annual Report Download - page 22

and more @ www.lifebuoy.com
To demonstrate its genuine health benefits, Lifebuoy conducted the biggest clinical trial
in Unilever’s home and personal care history, involving 2,000 families in Mumbai. Half
the families were supplied with soap along with regular education about the importance
of washing hands with soap on key occasions during the day. The other half continued
with their normal hygiene practice, acting as a control group. At the end of the trial, the
five-year-old children in the intervention group had 25% fewer episodes of diarrhoea
and significantly fewer days off school than children in the control group. The study
confirms the potential to change consumer behaviour, improve basic health through
hygiene and grow our brands’ market share.
Case study: Lifebuoy
Lifebuoy demonstrates
its effectiveness
Lifebuoy is one of Unilever’s fastest growing
brands in the personal care category. During
2009 the brand was relaunched, starting in
India, with a campaign that promotes good
hygiene practices, especially to mothers and
children. The products were reformulated
with new active ingredients, improved
fragrances and a distinctive new shape.
We work with a wide range of partners to help promote
the importance of handwashing. Launched in 2008, Global
Handwashing Day is an annual event backed by the Public-Private
Partnership for Handwashing with Soap, of which Unilever is
a founding partner. In 2009 more than 80 countries took part in
Global Handwashing Day, touching 120 million people worldwide.
Lifebuoy teams in 23 countries coordinated efforts with over
50 organisations, including governments and NGOs. Activities
included encouraging school children to take handwashing
pledges and the Lifebuoy Germ Fighter Drawing Contest.
Around the world, over 1 billion people do not brush their teeth
with a fluoride toothpaste. We estimate that more than 3 billion
people do not brush twice a day. Research results from a two-year
study show that brushing twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste
reduces tooth decay in children by up to 50% compared with
only brushing once. Recognising this opportunity to improve
oral health and expand our sales, our toothpaste brands have
launched their ‘Brush day and night’ campaign.
Making good quality products such as soap and toothpaste
affordable and widely available is a crucial starting point. But this
is not enough if people do not change their everyday habits too.
That is why Unilever’s health and hygiene programmes harness
the power of our marketing to change behaviour. The ‘social
mission’ of brands means such action is integrated into brand
strategies, not simply a philanthropic add-on.
Within our own workforce too, we can make a difference
to health and well-being. Our Lamplighter programme enables
Unilever employees to assess, track and improve important
aspects of their health such as blood pressure, fitness, mental
resilience and diet. This in turn improves the health of Unilever
as a business, with fitter, more engaged employees.
Hygiene – changing habits, helping save lives
Poor sanitation and a lack of personal hygiene remain the root
causes of many life-threatening diseases around the world.
Helping people to incorporate simple hygiene habits into
their everyday routines can achieve dramatic improvements.
Our competitive strength and long heritage of involvement,
particularly in developing and emerging markets, offer particular
opportunities to grow our brands and make a difference to
diseases caused by poor hygiene.
Our Lifebuoy brand helps to promote health and hygiene, and
in particular encourages people to wash their hands with soap.
In India, its Swasthya Chetna programme (‘Health Awakening’)
has run since 2002, raising awareness of the importance
of handwashing with soap to prevent disease. Similar hygiene
promotion activities run in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan,
Indonesia, Vietnam and South Africa. The brand’s hygiene
education has reached more than 133 million people in
these countries since 2002. In 2009 Lifebuoy was voted one
of India’s most trusted brands in a national consumer poll.
and more @ www.florahearts.co.uk
Do you know your heart age?
In 2009 Unilever and the World Heart Federation
launched Heart Age, a powerful new online tool
that uses diet and lifestyle facts such as weight,
cholesterol, blood pressure and smoking to
estimate cardiovascular risk factors, with the
offer of a free diet and lifestyle plan.
Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2009 19