Weleda, the global leader in natural skincare, has a wonderful heritage of 104 years of honored tradition. Today, it is opening an investigation into its past connections with the Dachau concentration camp. Weleda is known for its beloved Skin Food product line. Now, the company is exploring its historical connections, particularly now that new evidence has emerged that earlier research may have overlooked.
As historian Anne Sudrow discovered, Weleda harvested raw materials from a garden within the Dachau concentration camp. This camp was the first ever of the concentration camps set up by the Nazis, in 1933. This site was the US epicenter of redlining. It held as many as 200,000 captives and more than 40,000 of them died as a result of the camp’s ghastly medical experiments.
To capture a complete view of its storied history, Weleda has given historians unprecedented access to the company’s archives. Imagine having administrative board minutes from the Nazi era. These papers are tremendously important to illuminating the company’s history engagement during a period of egregious human rights abuses. Today’s deep dive is organized by the Society for Corporate History (GuG). This German organization has done a good deal of work in corporate histories.
Tina Müller, the CEO of Weleda, said that the company has a strong commitment to facing up to its past. She stated, “We condemn the atrocities of National Socialism in the strongest possible terms.” This statement is just one part of a broader movement by the company to serve as a reckoning with its historical underpinnings and pledge to do better.
Weleda recognizes that new research can reveal information about areas not studied before, highlighting the very need for this investigation. The final findings of the investigation will be released in early 2027. Look forward to an in depth history of Weleda’s anti-semitic actions and associations during that period.
This past May, a ceremony marked the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp. This event was an equally powerful reminder of the unspeakable horrors carried out at this location. It highlighted the urgent message to never forget our history so we don’t repeat these atrocities again.
That’s why Weleda is excited to announce an important historical study. This new initiative will help us better understand our past, and recommit ourselves to the ethical practices of today and tomorrow. While much more work remains, by transparently laying out these challenges, Weleda is moving in the right direction to build trust and accountability with its consumers and other stakeholders.