À l'occasion de la journée mondiale des Océans qui a eu lieu le 8 juin, la Herbal Essences a souhaité lancer une gamme de produits aux contenants 100% recyclables. La marque s'est associée à Terracycle (une compagnie de recyclage) pour créer des bouteilles fabriquées à partir de 25% de plastique retrouvé sur les plages à travers le monde. S'il n'est pas toujours évident d'éviter le plastique, il faut garder à l'esprit que cette matière peut être recyclée et ré-utilisée plusieurs fois! La gamme propose un shampoing au pamplemousse blanc et menthe de Meuse, un autre à l'huile d'argan du Maroc et un dernier au lait de coco. À noter que ces 3 produits sont bio et disponibles en édition limitée à partir de juin 2019.

“About nine million tons of plastic end up in the ocean each year,” explains Tom Szaky, CEO of TerraCycle, a global recycling company on a mission to eliminate waste. “Every year more people are producing more waste. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, by 2050 there will be more plastic by weight in our oceans than fish.”

Plastic waste has become a major area of investment and concern for beauty brands over the past few years, with multiple companies testing out more sustainable packaging options and initiatives. Earlier this year, Procter & Gamble-owned hair care brand Herbal Essences joined forces with waste management giant TerraCycle to launch a series of bottles comprising 25% beach plastic, while Kiehl's Since 1851 unveiled a limited-edition version of its signature ‘Rare Earth' mask in April alongside John Legend, presented in new, lower-plastic packaging. REN Clean Skincare has pledged to become completely "zero waste" by the year 2021, and personal care conglomerate Unilever recently unveiled a three-part plan to target plastic use in the US, including a pledge for 50% of its plastic packaging to be made from post-consumer recycled (PCR) content by the end of 2019.

Earlier this year, the beloved drugstore hair care brand announced the launch of their Beach Plastic collection, which featured fan-favorite formulas repackaged in upcycled bottles made from ocean plastic. (Little known fact: More often than not, plastic particles from ocean cleanup efforts are sadly, often considered non-recyclable due to levels of dirt and exposure to nature.) To break the vicious cycle, they've joined forces with TerraCycle, a company that specializes in recycling hard-to-recycle waste, to launch a nationwide take-back program to encourage people to recycle their empty bottles in addition to saving an estimated three tons of plastic that would’ve otherwise ended up in the trash — or even worse, on a sandy beachfront.

Herbal Essences a fait équipe avec TerraCycle, une compagnie verte spécialisée en récupération, pour la création de bouteilles en plastique recyclé.

But perhaps the biggest move forward is Loop, a new innovation from TerraCycle. The idea is simple: Durable, reusable packaging that you return through a milk man-inspired delivery and pick-up system. Corporations like P&G, Unilever, and The Body Shop have all signed onto the pilot program which launched just this week in New York, New Jersey, Washington D.C., Pennsylvania, and Maryland. “This is a huge step for brands to take towards more sustainable packaging,” TerraCycle's Teeter says, noting that she believes that this will be the future of consumption. It’s clear that the beauty industry needs to reform, and the sooner programs like this find success, the sooner it can, but it prompts a bigger question: how much time do we really have to figure this out before it’s too late to save the oceans?

But perhaps the biggest move forward is Loop, a new innovation from TerraCycle. The idea is simple: Durable, reusable packaging that you return through a milk man-inspired delivery and pick-up system. Corporations like P&G, Unilever, and The Body Shop have all signed onto the pilot program which launched just this week in New York, New Jersey, Washington D.C., Pennsylvania, and Maryland. “This is a huge step for brands to take towards more sustainable packaging,” TerraCycle's Teeter says, noting that she believes that this will be the future of consumption. It’s clear that the beauty industry needs to reform, and the sooner programs like this find success, the sooner it can, but it prompts a bigger question: how much time do we really have to figure this out before it’s too late to save the oceans?

“It all comes down to economics,” says Sarah Teeter, global project manager of recycling company TerraCycle. “Recyclers can only sustain themselves by recovering and recycling the things that are profitable.” That means that, ultimately, recycling is a business and, as of now, only clear and white plastic sells.

“Herbal Essences Recycling Program with TerraCycle is one way to help encourage recycling plastic bottles, especially from the bathroom,” said Lynn Hicks, Herbal Essences, North America brand manager. “We want to be sure all our hair care bottles have a way to be recycled and keep plastic out of our landfills and oceans.”