Sustainable Cosmetics: How Beauty Companies Prepare for a Greener Future

The list of beauty and cosmetic products with sustainable and climate-neutral formulations and packaging is growing. Companies are paying more attention to their ecological footprint and are committed to climate protection. As a result, drugstores, supermarkets, and perfumeries are filling up with products that consist of recyclable materials and ecological ingredients or get by with little packaging.

Cosmetics companies are responding to the request of their customers for more transparency with regard to formulations and types of packaging, and are researching ways to reduce plastic waste. How problematic this is has been disclosed several times in the past. Studies such as that from the environmental organization NABU have substantiated the urgency of a microplastic ban. The Environmental Protection Agency showed in a study the low recyclability of plastic packaging.

In the beauty and cosmetics sector, in particular, plastic containers and lids also hide tiny particles in the formulation, such as peeling granules or film formers made from microplastics or dissolved polymers that are washed into the oceans via the runoff.

Many cosmetic companies are addressing the problem and are researching ways of replacing ingredients with climate-neutral options and producing alternative packaging.

In order to simplify the integration, switch to ecological packaging, and create more transparency for consumers, the pre-competitive initiative SPICE (Sustainable Packaging Initiative For Cosmetics) launched by L'Oreal and Quantis—a consulting group that advises companies on sustainability—created an ecodesign tool with which cosmetic companies can calculate the ecological impact of their packaging materials on the climate from its creation to final recycling. The tool simulates several scenarios of how different packaging designs contribute to reducing the ecological footprint.

This could be, for example, glass jars instead of plastic tubes, recycled materials, or packaging that is biodegradable.

In addition to reducing plastic packaging, return models for used products are another way to avoid waste. If a certain number of empty packaging is returned, you can choose a new beauty product free of charge.

A well-known example here is the cosmetic brand MAC, which offers such a model with its Back to Mac program. If you hand in six of any empty original packaging, you can get a free eye shadow.

Other big brands like Dior, Mugler, and Hourglass are increasingly relying on products that can be refilled. Mugler offers a refill option for its perfumes. Likewise, Dior offers not only refills for perfumes but also foundations and creams. Among other brands, Hourglass has a lipstick that, when used up, can be replaced with a refill pack.

Alternatively, Babor and Guerlain rely on recycled and reusable packaging materials. Babor pursues the goal of producing 100 percent recyclable product packaging and reducing the use of plastic. Guerlain uses recycled glass for 95 percent of its perfume bottles, though 100 percent is the goal here too.