By Fabiana Negrin Ochoa

Amorepacific Corp. set itself new sustainability goals on Wednesday that tackle its use of palm oil and plastic packaging, key concerns for ESG-minded investors.

The beauty company behind brands like Laneige and innisfree said Wednesday that it will invest 10 billion won ($9 million) in biodiversity conservation and getting at least 90% of the palm oil it uses certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil by 2030.

Amorepacific is a member of RSPO, a nonprofit and certification program that aims to assess the negative impact of palm-oil cultivation on the environment and communities. Palm oil, a common ingredient in beauty and cosmetics products like shampoo or lotion, has a poor environmental reputation as a major contributor to deforestation.

Amorepacific, one of the largest cosmetics companies in the world by revenue, said it aims to reduce its plastics footprint by using recycled or bio-based plastics for 30% of its packaging, and by offering more refillable products and services across its portfolio of more than 20 cosmetics, personal-care and healthcare brands.

It also plans to divert the waste produced at its global production sites away from landfills and reach carbon neutrality by 2030.

The new goals come as South Korean companies double down on sustainability as ESG investing booms and policy pressure builds. The government last year threw its weight behind environmentally friendly growth with a multibillion-dollar "Green New Deal," while the Financial Services Commission this year tightened disclosure rules to require all companies listed on the Kospi index to publish environmental, social and governance data from 2030.

Write to Fabiana Negrin Ochoa at fabiana.negrinochoa@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-02-21 0239ET