Cosmetics Company Linked to Deadly Nazi Experiments

A new report commissioned by the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site alleges that Weleda, a Swiss natural cosmetics company, supplied a skin cream to Dachau in the 1940s—cream that, according to historian Anne Sudrow, was tested on prisoners in experiments that caused dozens of deaths. The study says the cream, originally made to protect soldiers from cold on the front lines, was provided to the camp in exchange for medicinal herbs harvested from an SS-run plantation in Dachau. SS doctor Sigmund Rascher reportedly used the product between 1942 and 1943 on around 300 prisoners, exposing them to freezing conditions via ice baths for hours. Sudrow estimates that 80 to 90 died as a result.

More than 40,000 people were murdered at Dachau before it was liberated by US troops in April 1945. The report also highlights close ties between Weleda and a Nazi research institute, including personal links: The company's former head of medicinal plants, Frank Lippert, joined the SS and later worked as a consultant for Weleda after the war. Sudrow says the findings have shaken her belief in biodynamic products, which are very popular in German-speaking countries, the Guardian reports. Austrian "spiritual scientist" Rudolf Steiner was among the founders of Weleda in 1921, and the company says it still follows the teachings of Steiner, who died in 1925.

Weleda responded by condemning Nazi atrocities "in the strongest possible terms," the BBC reports. "Fascism, antisemitism, racism, or right-wing extremist ideology have no place with us," chief executive Tina Mueller said. "'Never again' expresses our stance. That's why we are committed to a complete reappraisal of our history." She promised full transparency about Weleda's past. The company said it has given historians access to its archives and pointed to a recent internal history report. While this document acknowledges the delivery of the cream to the SS, it claims there's no clear evidence it was intended for human experiments. Weleda insists Lippert's work at Dachau wasn't tied to his time at the company.