Can’t stand the thought of more plastic bobbing in the ocean? These forward-thinking brands aim to usher in a new era of sustainable beauty, from the outside in. BY KATIE BECKER JULY 18, 2022 This may sound like a familiar scene: You’ve reached the final pump of a beloved serum or the last inky swipe from a mascara tube, and before you go to chuck the vessel, you take a look and wonder, “Can I recycle this?” For many beauty products, the answer is often an unhelpfully murky “sort of.” Aside from the dismaying realities about recycling that have come to light in recent years, there are conundrums of which plastics are commonly recyclable in a curbside bin, how the various components should be disassembled, and whether hidden pumps are a disqualifier. It also leaves you questioning whether all this packaging was necessary to begin with. Brands know you are thinking this, of course. Some are even run by individuals hand-wringing about the same. Today, you’ll see marketing for post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials, compostable bioplastics, “forever bottles” designed for easy refill, and “infinitely recyclable” aluminum tubes. There is even an international circular packaging system called Loop, with refill options from participating mass brands like Pantene and Crest (navigable through the accompanying app). The intent is to be the 21st-century milkman for beauty and beyond. “The proliferation of single-use products has increased exponentially over the last several decades and resulted in a global waste crisis that threatens our oceans, our ecosystems, and human health,” says Loop and TerraCycle founder Tom Szaky. “Today less than 10% of all single-use packaging is recycled, leaving the remaining 90% in landfills, incinerated, or discarded and ending up in our oceans.” While there is no definitive solution in terms of sustainable packaging, the latest innovations are proving creative and ambitious, without compromising the quality and efficacy of the beauty products themselves. Here, 16 brands that are moving the needle with the planet in mind. All products featured on Vanity Fair are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. • Everist This collection of hair and body-care products strikes upon two major initiatives in sustainable beauty: aluminum packaging and concentrated formulas (such as this Waterless Shampoo) that aren’t as bulky to ship. “Aluminum can be recycled over and over again and keeps its integrity, unlike plastic, which can only be downcycled once,” says Everist cofounder Jayme Jenkins. Aluminum is also lightweight, won’t break like glass, and does not rust. One caveat to aluminum, however, is that the energy cost to mine the metal is quite high. That’s why Everist tubes will be made from 100% recycled aluminum starting this fall, which will cut the tubes’ carbon footprint by 70%. $24 at Everist • Flamingo Estate This design-minded California brand works with more than 75 farms to create its body care, home fragrance, pantry items, and fresh products. This week, a new collection called Garden Essentials (including this Body Wash), arrives with all-aluminum packaging and recyclable pumps. “We considered non-petroleum plastic and post-consumer plastic, but even in its various disguises, it’s still plastic,” says Flamingo Estate founder Richard Christiansen. “Ultimately we grew passionate about aluminum packaging for bath and body products.” He acknowledges new challenges, including the fact that aluminum dents easily, “so we had to put extra protocols in place at each touchpoint.” Flamingo Estate has also turned attention to its shipper boxes, which are reused as compost in the garden for weed control. $48 at Flamingo Estate • Izzy Currently offering brow gel, lip gloss, and mascara (shown here), Izzy is the first makeup brand that is committed to circular packaging. Products arrive in a sturdy cloth envelope that you later use to send back the empties. “Our medical-grade stainless steel tubes are designed to be cleaned and refilled over 10,000 times,” says founder Shannon Goldberg. “What little plastic we do use is reground and recycled at our facility to make new wipers and brushes.” All operations also happen within a 400-mile radius. “Compared to the industry standard, our cosmetics have a 78% smaller carbon footprint after 25 refills,” she says. “The more our products are reused, the smaller our relative carbon footprint becomes over time.” Next up, Izzy is exploring technology that could eliminate the need for packaging components altogether, adds Goldberg. $39 at Izzy • Common Heir This plastic-free brand delivers its two skin-care serums—a retinol formula, shown here, as well as vitamin C—in biodegradable vegan capsules housed in recyclable paper containers. “The oft-cited figure (provided by Euromonitor) is that in the US alone, the [beauty] industry generates almost 8 billion units of rigid plastic packaging a year,” says cofounder and CEO Cary Lin, pointing out that the statistic predates a recent surge in the market. “We recently partnered with Bluebird Climate, [and] we found that we generate 35% less carbon emissions compared to the typical serum [format].” Each formula has taken at least a year of development, says cofounder and chief product officer Angela Ubias. Of the hundreds of formulas she’s worked on in her career, the Common Heir vitamin C serum was by far the most challenging, she notes. $88 at Common Heir • R+Co Bleu A sibling brand to the cult-loved original R+Co, this line delivers sophisticated, professional-level formulas with a minimized impact on the environment. The packaging draws on an array of well-meaning formats, including bottles made entirely from post-consumer recycled material (which requires a reported 88% less energy to produce) and cans using 100% recycled aluminum. The squeezable tube for the Essential Conditioner features sugarcane bioresins, a technology that is still uncommon in the industry. (Bybi is another brand that uses bioresin.) “Not only is sugarcane a renewable resource, but these sleeves have a 50% lower carbon footprint,” says R+Co president Dan Langer. “The costs and timing are inherently increased with this approach—however, we wanted to set a new standard for the beauty industry and establish new norms.” The bioresins used for beauty products can typically be recycled curbside with other plastics. $59 at R+Co Uni Launched earlier this year, Uni is a closed-loop system for body and hair care, featuring 100% recycled aluminum bottles and a sleek exterior “forever dispenser” designed by Marc Atlan. (Beauty-industry observers might know his prior work for Comme des Garçons and Kjaer Weis.) When you hit empty, you simply ship the aluminum bottle back to Uni for a replacement. “Our goal has always been zero waste, so it is important that the bottles that don’t get returned are recycled,” says founder Alexandra Keating. “Aluminum is infinitely recyclable. Nearly 75% of all aluminum ever produced is still in use today. Only 9% of plastics ever produced have been recycled.” The formulas are quite appealing (including the lightweight but moisturizing Body Serum), and the household-friendly universality increases the likelihood of exhausting a bottle. $40 at Uni • Captain Blankenship “When I started the company in 2009, our packaging was primarily glass, and then we transitioned some of our products, like our shampoo and conditioner, to ocean-bound plastic,” says founder Jana Blankenship of her search for functional, responsible materials. Most recently—as seen in retooled launches like this Hair & Scalp Serum—“we switched to aluminum after conducting a packaging study with the Rochester Institute of Technology, via the New York State Pollution Prevention Initiative.” The decision factored in the arc from manufacture to end-of-lifecycle, as well as the effects on human health and the potential to leach microplastics into waterways. An added complication for many brands is the recyclability of pumps. Usually made with multiple materials, they aren’t always realistic for a consumer to disassemble. As a result, Captain Blankenship is planning to move to mono-material pumps and sprayers, using curbside recyclable material, by next year. $43 at Captain Blankenship • Dove When mass brands with millions of customers worldwide engage in movements like refillable bottles, the positive impact can be great. “In 2019, we announced our commitment to make all our plastic packaging 100% recyclable and made from 100% recycled plastic—or plastic-free or refillable or renewable,” says Firdaous El Honsali, global vice president of external communications and sustainability for Dove, describing a multi-pronged approach. “Making all our bottles from 100% PCR reduced the use of virgin plastics by 20,500 tons per year.” The new Daily Moisture Body Wash is a case in point. The two-piece starter set includes a concentrated formula (to be diluted with water) along with a reusable aluminum bottle. “After two refills of the aluminum bottle, [a consumer uses] 50% less plastic than if they were to buy our standard single-use, 22-ounce body wash,” says El Honsali. $15 at Target Plus Some brands have become extremely imaginative about ways to reduce packaging—including the body-wash brand Plus, which makes dehydrated sheets of its formula, to be used one square at a time. After all, conventional body washes are mostly water anyway, so if you’re using it in the shower, what’s the difference? To up the ante, Plus also designed its individual sachets to be dissolvable as well: You literally toss the wrapper on your shower floor and watch it disappear. According to the brand, about one third of all landfill waste is personal care and beauty products. $7 at Target Codex Beauty Labs “We would define our approach as ‘plant-based recyclable,’” says Codex founder Barb Paldus, PhD, whose skin-care line uses recyclable, sugarcane-derived plastics for its squeezable tubes. This includes several cleansers, moisturizers, and eye creams, such as the Bia Hydrating Eye Gel. “Most companies who really get into being [carbon-]neutral realize it is a lot of work,” says Paldus. “It’s taken us three years to create two product lines that are home-compostable (and microbiome-friendly): soaps and bath soaks. And it took us one year of scouring the industry to find a home-compostable, standup, resealable pouch.” In the future, she pictures an industry where waterless products delivered in compostable packages become more common. $45 at Codex

By: Gabrielle Saulsbery February 24, 2022 7:25 am

There’s a lot to unpack

by Katherine Lalancette   When you look into how recycling management works, it’s a little like finding out Santa Claus doesn’t exist. The illusion shatters and along with it your belief in everything you once thought good and pure in the world. In a way, the road to landfills is paved with good intentions. We Canadians, for example, are notorious for “wish-cycling,” throwing items in the blue bin in the hopes that someone, somewhere will be inspired to recycle them. It doesn’t work like that. Instead, the non-accepted items—chip bags, pizza boxes, toothpaste tubes—only increase the likelihood of actual recyclables getting rejected because the lot is deemed contaminated. To be fair, though, nearly everything is recyclable in theory—even cigarette butts and dirty diapers. But in terms of what actually gets recycled, it all comes down to economics. “Recyclers want things they can recycle at a profit,” says Tom Szaky, founder and CEO of Terracycle, a company that aims to recycle materials that usually aren’t. The things that generate profit tend to be large objects made from a single material. And if that’s plastic, it’s usually clear PET (polyethylene terephthalate or type 1 plastic) or white HDPE (high-density polyethylene or type 2). In other words, it’s everything most beauty packaging is not. Chances are a lot of your personal care products fit in your palm and will thus likely get missed by sorting machines and thrown in the trash Take a look at your medicine cabinet. Chances are a lot of your personal care products fit in your palm and will thus likely get missed by sorting machines and thrown in the trash (it’s why samples and minis have been called the beauty industry’s dark secret). They’re probably also made of mixed materials (a plastic, rubber and metal razor; a metal spring in a plastic pump) and, if plastic, neither clear nor white. That last part is important as coloured plastic has a smaller chance of being recycled because of its lower resale value. (The same goes for glass. If it’s amber or green, Szaky says it probably won’t get recycled.) That’s because you can’t take colour out, only add to it, which makes it less attractive to companies. “Think of kids mixing paint,” he says. “It always ends up brown and you can’t unbrown the brown.” In Canada, roughly 773 million plastic beauty or personal care containers end up in landfills every year In 2018, the U.S. alone produced 7.9 billion units of plastic for beauty and personal care products, according to Euromonitor International. If we transpose that to a Canadian scale—considering Canadians have similar purchasing habits—“we can estimate that Canada produces 909 million plastic packaging units in a year,” says Laura Yates, plastic campaigner for Greenpeace. Out of that, about 23 per cent is diverted for recycling by consumers, but then a third of that is lost in the sorting and recycling process. Bottom line: In Canada, roughly 773 million plastic beauty or personal care containers end up in landfills every year. So does that mean brands are lying when they emboss a three-arrow triangle on the bottom of, say, a dark travel-sized plastic bottle? No, not technically. That bottle really is recyclable. The issue is similar to consumers’ wish-cycling tendencies: We’re betting our salvation on a system that’s out to make money, not fix the world’s waste problem. We’re betting our salvation on a system that’s out to make money, not fix the world’s waste problem When Ericka Rodriguez first started her makeup line, Axiology, in Bend, Oregon, she chose to house her lipsticks in aluminium tubes. “We thought, ‘This is great because aluminium can be recycled over and over again,’” she says. But the part of the tube that held the bullet was made of plastic, which meant that in cities that didn’t accept mixed-material items (guidelines vary a lot from place to place), the whole tube was being discarded. “We felt like we were being dishonest because we were like, ‘It’s recyclable,’ and then some people would be like, ‘It’s not, though, because there’s also plastic.’” It’s not that those aluminium tubes can’t be recycled, it’s that separating the components isn’t considered “worth it.” It gets worse. For a while now, biodegradable plastics have been touted as the solution. You’ve probably used compostable cutlery from that place you got a grain bowl from once and thought, “Wow, this is the future” and went on crunching your quinoa with a clear conscience. The problem is: Composters don’t want compostable packaging. The biggest retailer in the U.K. banned compostable packaging from its shelves after it learned composters weren’t actually composting these biodegradable plastics, they were burning them A year ago, Tesco, the biggest retailer in the U.K., banned compostable packaging from its shelves. It did that after it learned composters weren’t actually composting these biodegradable plastics, they were burning them. “Everyone was shocked and asked, “Why? Isn’t it really compostable?”’ says Szaky. “They said, “It is, but it costs us more to process it and deal with it so why would we bother doing it? We’re not morally obligated to do it, we’re not legally obligated. We’re a for-profit business.” Before you go chucking your game of Monopoly in the trash (recycling bin? Who the hell knows anymore?), know that capitalism isn’t the only variable at play. Australia, as part of its first-ever National Plastics Plan, announced last month that it would be banning bioplastics as research has shown that, environmentally, it’s not much better than the conventional kind. “Biodegradable plastics promise a plastic that breaks down into natural components when it’s no longer needed for its original purpose,” explains Jackie Gilbert Bauer, head of product development for hair care brand Hairstory. “The idea that plastic literally disappears once in the ocean or littered on land or in landfills is nice, but it’s not actually possible. Nothing disappears completely.” That’s why Greenpeace does not currently recommend switching to other types of disposable packaging like bioplastics, paper or even 100 per cent recyclable packaging. “Although these often feel like an environmentally better choice than plastic, they are false solutions that risk aggravating current environmental crises, don’t question current disposable culture, and divert attention from the real solutions that should favour reuse,” says Yates. “You really can’t recycle your way out of the place we’re in today” Even Terracyle, a company built on recycling, acknowledges recycling isn’t the solution. “You really can’t recycle your way out of the place we’re in today,” says Annika Greve, director, business development for North America at Loop, a new Terracycle initiative launched in Ontario earlier this year. Don’t get her wrong, recycling is “necessary and critical,” she says. For example, Terracycle and Nordstrom just partnered on Beautycycle, a program aiming to recycle 100 tons of beauty packaging by 2025 (you can bring any beauty empty to a Nordstrom store to have it recycled). But still, she says, recycling is “a Band-Aid on the much larger issue.” That’s where Loop comes in. It sort of works like an old-school milkman, collecting reusable bottles, cleaning them up and then refilling them. Loop assists companies in transitioning to durable, refillable containers and teams up with retailers such as Loblaws in Canada, so that consumers can buy participating products and drop off empties in a convenient location. Examples of beauty partners in Canada include indie brands like Oneka and Meow Meow Tweet, as well as REN, the first premium beauty brand to sign up. Arnaud Meysselle, REN’s CEO, doesn’t sugar-coat it: Eliminating waste is hard. “There are a lot of hurdles to overcome,” he says of the brand’s pledge to become waste-free by end of year. “There’s a financial impact, which we swallowed—additional costs are not added to the end product—because we are the sinner, so why would we ask people to pay for our sins?” “It’s much easier for the big companies to make these moves. They have the volume. They could do whatever they want”   Unfortunately, not every brand is in a position to absorb the costs linked to greener packaging. “It’s really hard for indie brands, the smaller brands, because a lot of these things come with a 10 or 50 thousand minimum order,” says Sheri L. Koetting, founder of MSLK, an agency that guides beauty brands at all stages of development. “So, it’s much easier for the big companies to make these moves. They have the volume. They could do whatever they want.” Ericka Rodriguez ran into this exact problem when she was sourcing refillable lip crayon tubes. “The quotes we were getting to make these were astronomical,” she says. “The way it works is there’s only so many beauty manufacturers out there. They’re mostly in China and they all already work for the big beauty brands. Since these big beauty brands haven’t really invested in, for example, a refillable crayon tube, we’re having to do it and it can be out of reach.” Luckily, the shift is starting. Last year, P&G brands Pantene, Head & Shoulders and Herbal Essences announced they’d be launching refillable shampoos and conditioners. In January, Dove debuted a refillable deodorant. Unfortunately, these products aren’t available in Canada yet. You can, however, shop refills from L’Occitane, Tata Harper, Hairstory and Kiehl’s, to name just a few. “By using 1-litre refill pouches, customers use on average 80 per cent less plastic compared to the same amount of formula across four 250-ml bottles,” says Leonardo Chavez, global vice-president for Kiehl’s. “Less plastic,” as in most pouches are still made of plastic, which Koetting says can be viewed as “not that eco-friendly.” “But the amount of plastic that goes into that pouch is so much more minimal and doesn’t take a lot of energy to make,” she says. Because it’s lighter and can ship flat, its transport also generates fewer carbon emissions. We have a tendency to vilify materials, says Szaky, which has certainly been the case with plastic in recent years. “Plastics can do amazing things that nothing else can do. Our computers are made from plastic, our eyeglasses are made from plastic. It’s also how the materials are used that determines whether they’re benevolent or not.” Perhaps the most benevolent material is no material at all Perhaps the most benevolent material is no material at all. British brand Lush has been a leader in that space with its packageless haircare and skincare bars. Rodriguez also decided to take that route with her multi-purpose balms—she did away with the tubes and instead wrapped the bullets in recycled paper—when she couldn’t find a manufacturer that could provide a packaging solution she was comfortable with. As consumers, supporting brands that offer these kinds of package-free or refill products—or letting the ones that don’t know that we want better options—can make a world of difference. “The number 1 thing that will make industry change is purchasing habits—that speaks volumes,” Greve says. But the most effective purchasing habit of all? Buying way less. “The only answer is lowering consumption,” Szaky says matter of factly. And this is where the illusion shatters even further: “No matter how vegan or fair-trade that thing that you bought is, if you didn’t buy it, that land that had to farm it could have been a forest.” Like Santa, Szaky confirms, “there’s no such thing as good consumption.”

It’s no surprise that convenient, generalist websites like Amazon are thriving this year as the coronavirus pandemic has forced most Americans into their homes for the long haul. In fact, in March and April, Amazon was even discouraging its customers from purchasing too many items, as the massive influx of orders was causing a shortage of items and shipping delays. Those issues aside, a growing reliance on online shopping is weighing heavily on the environment. According to Adobe Digital Economy Index’s latest data, U.S. e-commerce jumped by 49 percent in April, with online grocers experiencing a 110 percent boost in daily sales between March and April. Recent data suggests that e-commerce giant Alibaba’s single-day sales hit more than $38 billion in revenue this year, and according to Adept Packaging, those additional e-commerce sales resulted in 75 million extra plastic bags. Here is where industry newcomer Loop swoops in — the brainchild of entrepreneur Tom Szaky, who created the innovative recycling company TerraCycle as a Princeton drop out with the goal to recycle the food waste from the university dining halls into fertilizer. His company is now worth $20 million, and he’s branching out. In May of 2019 the program first started a webshop, supplying customers with the products they already know and love, from Haagen Dazs ice cream to Pantene shampoo and conditioner. The twist? Their containers were not just recyclable, but truly reusable — meaning they could be cleaned and then given a new life, if not a hundred. Now, big name retailers including Kroger are planning to make space in stores for Loop next year, utilizing TerraCycle’s refillable packaging system. Customers will be able to visit Loop stations to purchase a wide array of household products, all sold in stainless steel tins that Loop has specifically designed to eventually be returned, cleaned and sold again in a “milkman” style system. The refundable packaging does come at a small cost to consumers, who are required to pay a deposit that ranges from $1 to $10, depending on the container’s size and material. Loop’s Global Vice President of Creative and Communications, Lauren Taylor, says that the pandemic has fortunately not forced the company to shift priorities, sharing that, in fact, sales are at a platform-high. “Our priorities will continue to be aimed at eliminating waste and offering consumers their favorite brands and products in higher quality, better designed reusable packaging.” “Loop just launched in the United Kingdom July 15, and as of Sep. 15, 2020, Loop will be available to consumers in every ZIP code in the 48 contiguous U.S. states,” says Taylor. “Next year we will launch in Toronto, Tokyo and Australia. We are also working with select fast-food restaurants and beauty stores to provide reusable packaging to consumers. Be on the lookout for that in 2021.” How might that experience look in store? Well, at places such as Tesco in the United Kingdom and Carrefour in France, customers can be on the lookout for Loop corners, or areas of a store designed for products packaged in Loop’s containers. Aeon Co., Japan’s largest supermarket group, also plans to introduce Loop corners to 16 of their stores in the greater Tokyo area by next March. “We want people to come in and fall in love with these really cute, beautiful packages, understand the message and get excited about it,” Satoshi Morikiyo, general manager of  convenience goods at Aeon, told The Wall Street Journal. “Shopping trips are not necessarily something people look forward to, but this is a cool experience that offers something of a discovery—something new and fun.” Indeed, Taylor tells Changing America that with more than 100,000 people signed up for Loop, they’re excited to be expanding their services to the entirety of the continental United States and that rapidly growing consumer demand has secured Loop more than 80 partners and 400 products — a number that continues to grow weekly.

LONDON-- P&G Beauty unveils its newest packaging innovation across its haircare brands, set to change the way consumers buy, use and dispose of their shampoo bottles, as it continues its commitment to be a force for good and a positive force for beauty in the world.   As announced at a live panel of sustainability experts at the Reuters Responsible Business Summit, guests at The Window to Act is Now: Advancing Responsible Beauty in Europe heard that, as of 2021, Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie will enable the 200 million European households1 to recycle, reduce and reuse. The leading beauty brands will launch a refill system for their shampoo, thanks to a new reusable 100% aluminium bottle and recyclable2 refill pouch, made using 60% less plastic (per mL versus standard brand bottle). P&G Beauty is on track to reduce virgin plastic usage by 50% in shampoos and conditioners bottles by the end of 20213, where through collective efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle it will result in 300 million fewer virgin plastic bottles being produced yearly. peaking at the event, Artur Litarowicz, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Haircare for P&G Europe said; “We need to start turning the tide on the plastic waste crisis and there is no time to waste when it comes to protecting our planet. That is why I’m thrilled to announce a new packaging innovation called the ‘good refill system’. This will allow consumers to have the product they love now in a beautiful, reusable aluminium bottle and refill pouches as of 2021. This will be launched across Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie. We know this is just the start. There is so much more to do, and I am passionate about P&G Beauty being a force for good across Europe as we step towards achieving our 2030 Responsible Beauty goals at pace.” Virginie Helias, P&G’s Chief Sustainability Officer added; “We have committed to enable and inspire responsible consumption through innovation on our product and packaging. Our leading beauty brands in Europe touch millions of lives. This new packaging innovation will contribute to making the reuse of packaging irresistible, while enabling a reduction of virgin plastic as per P&G’s Ambition 2030 commitment. It’s no longer about if or what we can do, but how quickly we can do it - the window is now for embracing new sustainable lifestyles.” Litarowicz and Helias were joined at the interactive panel discussion by founder and CEO at TerraCycle, Tom Szaky, Head of Plastic Waste and Business at WWF, Erin Simon and climate activist, Clover Hogan, who provided their perspective on the role of brands to help turn the tide of the plastics crisis. Tom Szaky commented; “I’ve long been a believer that a refill behaviour is a big part of the future of sustainable packaging and the innovation announced by P&G Beauty today is a positive step in the right direction for the many millions of households Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie serve. While there is of course more to be done, it’s great to see large companies such as P&G Beauty taking the issue seriously and using their scale to drive change quickly and impactfully.”

P&G Beauty strikes a major blow to plastic waste with its new refill system including a reusable aluminium shampoo bottle and recyclable¹ pouch that uses 60% less plastic²

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, P&G Beauty unveils its newest packaging innovation across its haircare brands, set to change the way consumers buy, use and dispose of their shampoo bottles, as it continues its commitment to be a force for good and a positive force for beauty in the world. As announced at a live panel of sustainability experts at the Reuters Responsible Business Summit, guests at The Window to Act is Now: Advancing Responsible Beauty in Europe heard that, as of 2021, Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie will enable the 200 million European households1 to recycle, reduce and reuse. The leading beauty brands will launch a refill system for their shampoo, thanks to a new reusable 100% aluminium bottle and recyclable2 refill pouch, made using 60% less plastic (per mL versus standard brand bottle). P&G Beauty is on track to reduce virgin plastic usage by 50% in shampoos and conditioners bottles by the end of 20213, where through collective efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle it will result in 300 million fewer virgin plastic bottles being produced yearly. Speaking at the event, Artur Litarowicz, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Haircare for P&G Europe said; “We need to start turning the tide on the plastic waste crisis and there is no time to waste when it comes to protecting our planet. That is why I’m thrilled to announce a new packaging innovation called the ‘good refill system’. This will allow consumers to have the product they love now in a beautiful, reusable aluminium bottle and refill pouches as of 2021. This will be launched across Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie. We know this is just the start. There is so much more to do, and I am passionate about P&G Beauty being a force for good across Europe as we step towards achieving our 2030 Responsible Beauty goals at pace.” Virginie Helias, P&G’s Chief Sustainability Officer added; “We have committed to enable and inspire responsible consumption through innovation on our product and packaging. Our leading beauty brands in Europe touch millions of lives. This new packaging innovation will contribute to making the reuse of packaging irresistible, while enabling a reduction of virgin plastic as per P&G’s Ambition 2030 commitment. It’s no longer about if or what we can do, but how quickly we can do it - the window is now for embracing new sustainable lifestyles.” Litarowicz and Helias were joined at the interactive panel discussion by founder and CEO at TerraCycle, Tom Szaky, Head of Plastic Waste and Business at WWF, Erin Simon and climate activist, Clover Hogan, who provided their perspective on the role of brands to help turn the tide of the plastics crisis. Tom Szaky commented; “I’ve long been a believer that a refill behaviour is a big part of the future of sustainable packaging and the innovation announced by P&G Beauty today is a positive step in the right direction for the many millions of households Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences and Aussie serve. While there is of course more to be done, it’s great to see large companies such as P&G Beauty taking the issue seriously and using their scale to drive change quickly and impactfully.”

It’s a bit of an understatement to say that health concerns are currently driving consumer behaviors and purchases in today’s marketplace. Research conducted by Paris-based Ipsos in July showed that 85% of consumers are concerned about the COVID-19 outbreak. According to the Washington, D.C.-based International Food Information Council, that same percentage of consumers (85%) reported that they’ve changed the way they eat or prepare food in the wake of the pandemic. While the novel coronavirus is a major, and arguably overriding, worry, that doesn’t mean that people aren’t making decisions based on other timely situations, from social issues to environmental concerns.