Did you know 56% of Brits don’t recycle their bathroom empties*? In fact, 70% of beauty packaging doesn’t get recycled*. Given the global beauty industry produces 120 billion units of packaging annually*, that’s a shocking amount of waste.
Recycling beauty empties isn’t all that easy. For starters, a lot of products are made up of different components which have to be taken apart to recycle. Think of items like compacts made up of mirrors, powder palettes and plastic, or mascara tubes which combine synthetic fibres with plastic.
If you’ve ever been baffled by what to do with your beauty empties, you’re not alone. Here we break down what packaging symbols mean, how to recycle those tricky products and how to upcycle to reduce your beauty waste.
Packaging Symbols
Easy-to-recycle beauty products should have symbols or instructions letting you know how to recycle them. Generally speaking, you can recycle the following packaging at home: body wash, shampoo and conditioner, aerosols, fully aluminium packaging, plastics marked as PET (1) or HDPE (2) as well as items marked with a Mobius Loop. Always take care if recycling instructions ask you to keep a lid on or remove it.
Hard-to-Recycle Beauty Packaging
Take a look at your beauty shelf and you’ll probably find your product packaging is made up of a few different components. Think of lipsticks, compacts, palettes, lotion pumps and make up brushes. These items need to be taken to a specialist take-back scheme. Some retailers offer these schemes, like Boots or Look Fantastic. You can also find your nearest take-back scheme using the British Beauty Council’s directory here.
Upcycle Your Empties
Repurposing your beauty empties is a great way to reduce the amount of waste you generate. Glass moisturiser and serum pots are perfect little storage containers for smaller items like hair pins or travel bottles which you can refill for trips.
Larger pots or empty candle holders work as fantastic storage containers for things like make up brushes, lipsticks and cotton buds or DIY reed diffusers.
If you’re looking for a more decorative option, you can use glass containers as miniature vases or fill them with pot pourri to scent small places like bathrooms.
Here's some of our refill options from brands Prada and Valentino—an easy way to reduce waste and make your beauty routine more sustainable.
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*Source: 'The Courage To Change', The British Beauty Council (9 November 2020)
