Weleda, the natural cosmetics company, has launched a study into its links to a Nazi concentration camp following claims an anti-freeze cream it produced was tested on prisoners.
A report by historian Anne Sudrow alleges that the Swiss company ordered raw materials from a garden in the Dachau camp. It also made a cream to protect against hypothermia which an SS doctor allegedly used in human experiments.
Weleda said a separate report in 2023 found no evidence Dr Sigmund Rascher tested the cream on prisoners kept in freezing conditions for hours.
The firm said it condemned the Nazi regime's atrocities and acknowledged the new findings may not have been fully explored in previous research.
Dachau, near Munich, was the first concentration camp set up by the Nazis in 1933. It is thought about 200,000 people have been imprisoned there and more than 40,000 died before its liberation in 1945. Many deaths were attributed to medical experiments.
Ms. Sudrow's book details the relationship between Weleda and the SS, outlining claims of experiments conducted on up to 300 prisoners between August 1942 and May 1943. Reports indicate that an anti-freeze cream was tested to evaluate its effectiveness in preventing hypothermia among German soldiers, leading to up to 90 prisoner deaths during tests.
The 104-year-old company, known for its Skin Food range, is committed to transparently researching our history, with expectations of the new investigation's results, led by the Society for Corporate History, to be published in early 2027.
Tina Müller, Weleda's CEO, emphasized condemning National Socialism's atrocities and stated, Never again should fascism and extremism have a place in society. The company has facilitated historians' access to its archives for necessary research.
Weleda has admitted previous reports did not thoroughly examine all aspects of its history, acknowledging materials were requested from Dachau, but were never delivered. It’s reported that Dr. Rascher ordered Weleda's anti-freeze cream, but there's no evidence the company knew it was used on prisoners.
Founded in 1921 by philosopher Rudolf Steiner, Weleda remains committed to understanding its past in light of these historical revelations.
