Cosmetics Sustainability in 2020: Waste Upcycling & Refillable Packaging

TAGS:  Natural/ Organic    Skin Care    Toiletries   

Sustainability, and all it implies, is top of mind for many consumers when choosing cosmetic and toiletries products. Consumers worldwide are increasingly buying into sustainability values, whether it’s:

• Buying products made locally from fairly traded ingredients, or
• In recycled/recyclable packaging
• As well as a whole host of other concerns

Although the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has posed new challenges across the globe, sustainability continues to be a priority for many consumers.

According to GlobalData, 33% of consumers globally say that ethical and sustainable sourced ingredients are more important than before due to Covid-19, while a further 15% say this is now their top priority.

“Consumers have, in fact, become more thoughtful about what they are buying, whether it be buying local or demanding more transparency in terms of ingredients and where products are made,” states Yamina Tsalamlal, Consumer analyst, GlobalData. Tsalmlal maintains that spending more time shopping online means consumers are finding products targeted to their ethical needs.

However, the protracted lockdown has put a huge strain on supply chains, with many companies grinding to a halt. On the plus side, more consumers turned to shop locally as they saw that this could be a convenient way to get hold of certain products as well as a way of supporting the community.

“Think about it,” says Tsalmlal, “if you buy an organic, fair trade, vegan moisturizing cream, but it travels 5,000km to get to you, is it really as environmentally friendly as you think?”

Buying local and/or independent in beauty is an easy way to have a positive impact on the environment. It enables consumers to:

• Build relationships with brands ensuring transparency of ingredients, and
• Provenance which ensures they are buying the sustainable products they were promised.

Let's discover how beauty brands are increasingly repurposing food waste into new cosmetic ingredients and switching to recyclable plastic packaging.

Upcycling Waste for Beauty Products

By-products from the food industry and food waste are increasingly being repurposed into new cosmetic ingredients containing powerful actives, such as antioxidants. For example, carrot seeds are a key ingredient of Carrot Algae Marine Drops from Beauty Cleanse Skincare. These seeds are collected from local UK suppliers who reject them as they do not meet the specification for food use.

Saman Ali, founder of Beauty Cleanse Skincare says, “We rescue these nutrient-rich seeds from going to waste and landfill, and cold press them into the antioxidant-rich oil used in our formulation.”


Key Features of Carrot Algae Marine Drops
(Source: Beauty Cleanse Skincare)

The Body Shop also uses repurposes carrots and bananas, rejected because they do not comply with food standards, for its carrot and banana skincare and haircare ranges.



Meanwhile, coffee grounds and chai tea spices are being diverted from landfills into skincare products by UK brand UpCircle.



Other sustainable food ingredients repurposed for beauty include:

• Mushrooms – As they can be grown with low quantities of water in a small area.
• Algae – A fast-growing plant increasingly used in beauty products for its superfood properties.

Solving Plastic Problem with Refillable Packaging

Zero Waste Week is a global campaign that started in 2008 in response to the 70% of plastic waste estimated to end up in oceans. Some beauty brands are taking heed by switching to recycled and recyclable plastics.

An example is Faith in Nature, a leader in the sustainable beauty movement since 1974, that has switched its packaging from reground yogurt pots to ocean-bound reclaimed plastic, collected from rivers and streams before it enters the sea.

• The plastic is collected by communities stricken by poverty who are paid at source for their efforts.
• They are given the opportunity to perform organized operations which can grow to aggregation sites and eventually become factory level recyclers.

Refill Means No Land-fill: Zero waste and 100% Feel Good
(Source: Faith in Nature)

The next step towards the elimination of single-use plastics, which is prevalent among the majority of cosmetic and toiletries brands, is refillable packaging.

• The Dutch beauty brand, Rituals, sells refill pouches for hand wash and body creams that fit into the original jar.
• Furthermore, L’Occitane was one of the first beauty brands to offer refills and has rolled the eco-refill format out across its toiletries range.

However, Jo Chidley, founder of The Beauty Kitchen, does not believe that the industry is going far enough to eliminate single-use plastics. She is on a mission to change our collective throwaway habit with her groundbreaking “return, refill, repeat” program.

Proving that a small independent brand can steal a march on the multinationals, The Beauty Kitchen is achieving levels of 90% for its return, refill and rewash scheme. “If you walk into any big store, the majority of products are packaged in single-use plastics. It doesn’t matter that the industry says it must stop - consumers need alternatives,” she argues.



The US recycling company, Terracycle is starting to make inroads in Europe with its Loop refill and reuse program and is signing big-name brands, such as Nivea.


Terracycle & Loop CEO, Tom Szaky, Tells Us How Does Loop Work?

Beauty brands that embrace sustainability values will be at the forefront of a trend that will open up new and exciting future marketing opportunities.

Sustainability in Cosmetics: What it means for Formulators

Take the course by Jen Novakovic (leading cosmetics formulation consultant, Director of Eco Well), who will help you explore the whole sustainability concept in cosmetics and its impact through all phases of the cosmetic product life cycle. She will also explain how can you can confidently & ethically claim your sustainability goals by substantiation!