In an industry dedicated to beautification, many brand names don’t think about the influence that manufacturing and product packaging have on our Earth. Defacing our once-pristine beaches and waterways, as well as poisoning our wildlife with non-biodegradable plastics is something that must issue to every person.
[Your brand here] is a brand that promotes sustainable living as well as aims to elevate your daily life with gorgeous beauty items. We want to take the time to deal with a problem that’s near to our heart: the rampant use of plastic in the skincare market. In this post, I discuss everything from what plastic is used for, to why it’s used and the influence it has on our precious environment.
Just How Is Plastic Utilized in the Beauty Industry?
The beauty industry uses plastic everywhere – from product packaging to containers, to microbeads. It has actually ended up being such a big part of our society that it’s almost impossible for a family to go totally plastic-free.
Products such as shampoo contain microplastics. Plastic bottles are and are often encased in plastic packaging. The final nail in the coffin is the plastic label on the product. The worst part of all of this is that plastic isn’t recyclable.
Microplastics or microbeads are pieces of plastic that are less than 5 mm in size and they are are used as emulsifying agents or as inexpensive filler for a product. Microplastics get into our waterways, and contaminate the environment, and expose marine life to hazardous contaminants. Microbeads in some toothpaste and other dental products get stuck in gum tissues and cause dental problems; they also get into your system and can cause other health problems.
Here are some stunning plastic usage statistics:
- According to National Geographic, plastic packaging in US products has increased over 100 times since 1960
- Nearly 70% of plastic is disposed of in landfills, with the remainder floating in our seas
- The total rate of plastic recycling is depressing: just 7.8% in 2019
Sustainable living and plastic pollution do make sense. If we want a healthy, problem-free future, we must take charge of the plastic problem and actively work to address it. This is exactly how plastic is problematic:
Plastic does not break down
Unlike biodegradable materials such as paper and cardboard, plastic does not biodegrade in the environment – at least, not in a reasonable amount of time. It can take a century for a piece of plastic to disintegrate, which means that all the plastic we utilize as well as throw away day-to-day is piling up, waiting to break down someday. Meanwhile, it poisons our environment.
Plastic is eaten by our aquatic wild animals
Turtles, seabirds, dolphins, seals and of course fish mistake plastic for food and end up consuming it or feeding it to their young. The plastic then loads their tummy and triggers a digestive clog, ultimately killing the animal.
Plastic leaches hazardous chemicals right into our soil
When our plastic fills up our land fills, it gradually seeps poisonous chemicals right into the the earth. The chemicals then make their way right into our water supply and, after that, are usually consumed by us by way of absorption by our crops or in our drinking water.
Plastic is non-recyclable
So you say you recycle plastic things? Remember that dismal statistic from earlier – we recycled just 7.8% of it in 2019. And of that 7.8% some of it doesn’t even get used because new plastic is cheaper than recycled so it makes more economic sense to use new plastic anyway.
The listing can in fact be longer with issues triggered by plastic, however let’s take a look at how plastics are used in the beauty market.
Why Do Brands Make Use Of Plastic in Their Products?
Plastic has a lot of uses, which is why brand names use it so commonly. Nobody intends to proactively damage the environment – it’s simply that plastic gets the job done, and it does so inexpensively, compared to something like glass which can become dangerous. We’re a brand name dedicated to sustainable living, however even we acknowledge that plastic is a beneficial product. For example, face masks are available in slim plastic sheaths for hygienic reasons that can not be avoided in a time of global pandemic.
Plastic is perhaps the very best material for product packaging and containers, due to the fact that it’s light-weight, adaptable, tough, appealing as well as even waterproof. With soap as well as other products currently being available in liquid form, business need sturdy water-proof containers for them.
Microplastics as well as microbeads are utilized in products that aid in cleaning, for their ability to scrub and lift surface stains. They’re often used in facial scrubs, toothpaste, as well as various other cleaning beauty items.
An additional reason that plastic is made use of widely is since plastic is cheap. Alternatives often cost lots of times greater than plastic. And to add to the issue new plastic is cheap so brand names go with unrecycled plastic due to the fact that it’s the most cost-efficient and perdictable product. Customers usually make their purchase options based on the lowest expense possible, so our actions as customers go up the chain to the suppliers’ choices also.
Probably another factor may be the fact that the unsafe effects of plastic aren’t becoming troublesome yet to us human beings. If harmful chemicals and also plastic contamination were actually making life tough, federal governments might outlaw the material outright, however the issue is still considered one of the distant future, so many individuals (and brands) do not have the insight to stay clear of plastic.
Going Plastic Free
The good news is that several brand names around the globe are trying to reduce their use of plastic. With bathroom bombs as well as hair shampoo bars as opposed to bubble bath as well as bottled shampoo, some companies have actually altered the method people use particular products, and also while doing so, cut down on a lot of plastic. A great deal of beauty products are mainly water, and these liquid-form products need water-resistant containers. By eliminating the water and transforming the item to solids, like bars of soap and eyeliner pencils, brands can eliminate plastic.
Recyclable containers are an additional way in which brand names can promote lasting living. Some make-up firms have been dealing with refillable containers, which can be used as well as reused for many years.
It’s possible to change some plastic product packaging with paper or cardboard like in bars of soap. Many people don’t wish to get a bar of soap that’s completely unpackaged, yet product packaging made of paper is a sufficient choice for the majority of functions.
[Your brand here] and sustainable living go hand-in-hand
Sustainability is among our goals, as well as it saddens our hearts to see the mess consumers and suppliers have actually produced for us. What’s worse is the truth that the plastic problem has currently begun to take a serious toll on our marine wildlife, yet there are individuals that still do not know about the problem, or who are uncommitted.
We intend to help inform our readers so they understand the range of the issue and also can make changes in their way of living to come to be much more sustainable.
At [Your brand here], we do our part by ensuring that all our items are as lasting as possible. We attempt to lessen our use plastic and stay clear of utilizing it in our product packaging unless really necessary. You’ll see a growing number of our new zero-waste product launches, such as the zero-waste face cleaning soap. On top of that, silk is a sustainable product, which is among the reasons that we selected it for our items.
The next time you need to get something, try to select a company that makes its items sustainably. It’s a small change, yet this small change will go a large way in making your home a little bit more sustainable. With millions of people like you doing the exact same thing, we can conserve the Earth from a plastic-choked future.
