The more we know about climate change, the more apparent it becomes that there are changes we can all be making in our day to day lives to help the rapidly declining state of the environment.
120 million units of packaging are produced by the cosmetics industry every year - that’s right! And with much of these being unable to be recycled, it’s important that we educate ourselves on sustainable beauty packaging and how to properly dispose of our makeup and skincare empties.Unfortunately, makeup packaging recycling can be a bit tricky. If you find it all a bit confusing, here’s what to do with your beauty empties to be as kind to the planet as possible.
Can I recycle my beauty empties?
When it comes to recycling your beauty containers, if the packaging is made of one general material, you can rinse it and toss it directly into its respective recycling bin. This includes packaging that’s made of only glass, only plastic, or only cardboard, for example.Glass is 100% recyclable and can be endlessly recycled with no loss of quality. If you can, look for products that come in glass containers. Just make sure that you’ve washed out any leftover product from the glass container before recycling.
More often than not, beauty products are made from more than one type of material, making it tricky to dispose of them in an eco-friendly way. Take a look at the items currently sitting in your makeup bag: anything that’s made with more than one material will need to be separated before it is recycled or it will need to go in the general waste bin.
Any products that have pump tops or droppers use a mix of materials and will need to be separated before being thrown in the bin. Items such as mascara, lipstick, nail polish & eyeshadow palettes often contain mixed materials that cannot be recycled or reused (such as a mix of aluminium and plastic, a mirror or a magnet keeping the makeup palette shut), so it’s best to throw them straight into the bin unless you can safely separate and dispose of them correctly.
Look for beauty products with sustainable packaging
To make things easier, here’s our sustainable beauty tip: choose products that come in eco-friendly packaging! Look for beauty brands that use sustainable packaging or recyclable materials like aluminium or recyclable and reusable PCR plastics.At INIKA, we use recyclable and biodegradable packaging throughout our skincare range. Our tubes are made from sugarcane rather than traditional plastic packaging. It is a completely renewable resource that can replenish quickly and completely, it’s biodegradable and it reduces your carbon footprint by absorbing CO2 from the air as it grows - instead of releasing CO2 as traditional plastic packaging does.
We also use glass jars and aluminium lids across the range to make it easier to recycle after use.
The best way to be green: reuse your empties!
If it’s not possible to correctly dispose of your beauty items by recycling them, there are a few other eco-friendly beauty tips you can try.1. Keep empties as makeup travel containers
Rather than buying new skincare products every time you travel, why not use your empty containers and refill them with your favourite shampoo or body moisturiser. By reusing them, you’re preventing them from ending up in landfill and saving yourself a few pennies not having to buy new products to take away with you!
2. Use empties as storage
Try and reuse makeup containers as bathroom storage for your smaller beauty items like hair ties, cotton buds or tissues. Reusing them saves them from being disposed of incorrectly. For example, an empty container of our Loose Mineral Foundation could become a cute box for your hair ties and hair clips, or the glass jar of your empty Phytofuse Renew Resveratrol Night Cream could keep all of your cotton rounds together.Choose eco-friendly beauty now
Start making more sustainable choices by choosing eco-friendly, natural-based beauty brands like INIKA. Our philosophy is built on creating sustainable beauty products and environmentally-friendly beauty options that protect both your skin and the planet. Discover our full range of makeup and skincare products online today!