Featuring three days of program content, scheduled networking, industry innovations, and awards, Hygienix™ is devoted to the latest in sustainable technologies, emerging markets, converting challenges, product and technical innovations, and market trends in the absorbent hygiene and personal care industry. More than 500 professionals from 24 countries with 53 tabletop displays attended last year’s event to address issues and advances affecting the largest global nonwoven and engineered materials sector.

The area of environmental sustainability of absorbent hygiene and personal care products will be at the forefront of the conference topics for Hygienix™ 2019.

Three keynote speakers highlight the program:

• Marcus Eriksen, Ph.D., Co-founder and Director of Research of the 5 Gyres Institute – will present how companies can address their part of the plastic pollution problem and minimize the impact of plastics in the environment.
• Karen Fingerman, Ph.D., Professor, University of Texas at Austin – will discuss how Gen X, Millennials, Gen Y, Gen Z, and the new Gen Alpha all fundamentally alter society by differing in characteristics such as education, communication, values, marital patterns, and childbirth.
• Suzanne Shelton, President and CEO, The Shelton Group – will present new research indicating 40 percent of millennial women who expect to have a period are using or considering reusable period products.

Other notable presentations include:

• Mary Ankeny, Cotton Incorporated: presents the path of cotton and synthetic microfibers as they shed, enter waterways, and break down in different aquatic environments.
• Yijian Lin, Ph.D., The Dow Chemical Company: introduces designs for recycling and explains how creating a more “mono” material can simplify the recycling process and improve chances of recyclability, content for every hot melt chemistry used, and SBS/partially hydrogenated resin hot melt chemistry.
• Christophe Morel-Fourrier, Ph.D., Bostik, Inc.: explains megatrends and how substances of interest and recent concerns of trace level chemical substances present in baby diapers or femcare products have surfaced in the disposable hygiene industry and have “shaken” the AHP industry and its supply chain.
• Sventlana Uduslivaia, Euromonitor International:reveals the latest global consumer findings on green/ethical living, attitudes towards health and the environment, and perspectives on the definition of “natural”.
• Pricie Hanna, and Colin Hanna, Price Hanna Consultants LLC: presents a play-book for how diapers must be manufactured, marketed and sold to millennial parents based on leading brand strategies.

A full description of all 33 speakers can be viewed on www.hygienix.org