After hours of research, scouring the raves and reviews, you rejoice in finding your new go-to organic lotion. Everything that went into the bottle meets an ethical standard that is both good for you and good for the planet.

Wait a second… what about the bottle itself?

If your goal is to become a user of more ethical and sustainable beauty, don’t forget about the packaging that holds your creams and cosmetics!

33622201185_263438cd38_o — Plastic packaging is rampant in the beauty industry. *Photo courtesy of Karolina Mis via Flickr Creative Commons*.

Steps have been taken to reduce the plastic pollution plaguing the beauty and personal care industry. It started with banning microbeads in exfoliating scrubs, but the plastic that doesn’t go down the drains and into our oceans will usually end up in a landfill. I’m talking about the single-use plastic packaging our beauty products come in.

Don’t be fooled; other industries are making a big impact on the environment due to packaging waste as well. Think about the endless amount of packaging that comes with meal delivery kits or the tons of cardboard online retailers use to ship their goods around the world. But how significant is the issue within the beauty sector alone?

The global cosmetics industry alone produces over 120 billion units of packaging every year. Nearly 18 million acres of forest are lost each year due to the manufacturing of cardboard that will hold the makeup jars and bottles. At this rate, we can expect 12 billion tons of plastic in landfills by the year 2050.

Certainly, there are brands that have begun to incorporate elements to help combat the environmental crisis. They repackage their products with recycled materials and distribute goods with sustainably-sourced papers. Moreover, some beauty companies have pledged actionable initiatives that give back to the planet, such as working with organizations to aid in reforestation or clean-up projects.

10176903046_b00f70fee9_o — Beauty brand Aveda provides recycling guidelines for its products. *Photo courtesy of Mainstream via Flickr Creative Commons*.

Beauty brands recognize the significance of the packaging problem to their business, to their customers, and to our planet. Just see what L’Oréal Paris has to say about sustainable packaging.

Now, how can we do our part to remedy the problem without giving up on the products we love?

I’ll break it down into those familiar three R’s: reduce, reuse, and recycle!

Reduce

Arguably, reducing overall consumption is the most critical step when faced with this issue. Eliminate the problem -the waste- by not creating it in the first place. Less really can be more.

Choose products that have reduced lighter packaging, which saves both you and the company money in manufacturing it.

Or, forgo packaging altogether. At least, that’s what Lush is trying to give – or should I say, not to give? – their customers with the newly opened Lush Naked Shop.

You can further reduce your consumption by making your own beauty products at home.

Reuse

Those used up jars and bottles don’t need to be single use.

Get crafty and repurpose those cosmetic containers!

If you follow my previous suggestion of making your own beauty products, now you can reuse a container to store your own DIY concoction.

Larger jars can be used to organize your brushes, or even be used as a small glass planter. Getting creative with all the possibilities is part of the fun.

Plus, you already spent your money on those pretty bottles. Why not keep them around but give it a new life?

Recycle

You will be rewarded for your efforts. Really, several brands like Lush and M.A.C. Cosmetics offer a recycle and reward program. Trading in your empty containers with the store means they can properly recycle their packaging and offer you freebies or loyalty points.

Additionally, it doesn’t hurt to familiarize yourself with proper recycling methods and practices.

A plastic bottle can be recycled, but maybe not the pump lid attached. Aerosol cans or squeezable tubes may have restrictions in your area.

And with that, I’ll set you all off with simple steps we can all take to manage this beauty packaging problem. Let me know in the comments how you plan to reduce, reuse, or recycle.

Conscious Consumer

The conscious consumer is one who takes into thoughtful consideration the product or service they are purchasing. More and more, one’s health and wellness come to the forefront when assessing the products. Conscious consumers consider the potential impact the product will have on themselves and even their surroundings.

This emergent category of consumers continues to uphold the trend of opting for natural products and alternatives. If these are beauty products that they apply almost daily to their face and body, it makes sense that a conscious consumer would be concerned about the quality and ingredients of the product.

As a conscious consumer yourself, think about what “clean” and “natural” beauty or personal care products mean to you. This can be makeup, soaps, shampoos, lotions, etc. (Please let me know in the comments. Your answer may differ from others!)

Let’s say some of your interpretations include things like not containing artificial or harmful chemicals, ingredients deriving from nature, and so on.

Ideally, you would like your products labeled with these words to mean what you believe it to mean when brands deliver a “natural” product. However, there are differing interpretations by different beauty brands that market with these terms.

Marketing the Mission

The beauty brands already know what their conscious consumers prefer. Assuming the brands’ practices follow through with their definition of clean and natural products, all that’s left is to communicate to the masses that they have what the consumers want…

… while competing with countless other brands claiming the same thing.

Again, assuming their manufacturing practices comply with their company mission, using terms like “clean” and “natural” is perfectly acceptable and not just greenwashing.

Brands know that their consumer base is educating themselves on the practices and ingredients that go into making their products. As a result, many brands are becoming more transparent about the sourcing of their ingredients and the formulation of their cosmetics and skin-care items, making that type of information readily available to the public.

The companies want their clean and natural beauty initiatives to speak for themselves to drive customers to purchase their products.

The current market is oversaturated with the same words, emphasizing “clean”, “natural”, “organic”, “safe”, “non-toxic”, “eco-friendly”, etc. At the same time, brands using all these descriptors are not false-marketing. Without industry standards, as previously mentioned, brands are free to claim their products are “clean” and “natural” if the products fit the company’s own definition of those terms.

In the end, these brands aren’t trying to deceive their customers with their green buzzwords. But to make sure the products you use are meeting your standards, it’s best to do your own digging and read the ingredient list instead of relying on the marketing.

Tag: conscious consumer

Our Commitment to Sustainable Beauty Should be a “Package” Deal