The beauty industry’s waste problem is persistently discussed, and rightly so—the beauty industry produces over 120 billion units of packaging globally, accounting for one third of all landfill waste, with 56% of consumers revealing they do not recycle their bathroom products. With this in mind, the British Beauty Council has revealed the Great British Beauty Clean Up (GBBCU)—an initiative focused on informing and educating the public rather than encouraging brands to make more changes. The cleanup is a “first-of-its-kind” collaboration of retailers and brands designed to reduce waste by increasing professional and consumer awareness via adopting reuse and refill systems.
The initiative was created by the Sustainable Beauty Coalition (a collective of sustainability experts from leading beauty brands such as Lush, Marie Claire, and Weleda UK in partnership with the British Beauty Council) to promote reduce, reuse, refill, and recycle practices, while encouraging consumer engagement in the responsible disposal of beauty packaging. The GBBCU was launched during Waste Week (March 3-9) and in alignment with Global Recycling Day (March 18), and the United Nations International Day of Zero Waste (March 30).
“The beauty industry provides so much joy and self-confidence and is a source of expression for so many people, but this should not come at the cost of the planet," said Millie Kendall OBE, CEO of the British Beauty Council said. "The Sustainable Beauty Coalition has spearheaded moves by the industry to reduce our industry’s impact on the planet, and its new campaign is specifically designed to reduce the amount of beauty empties that end up in landfill.”
Popular High Street retailers such as Boots, Holland & Barrett, Superdrug, and The Perfume Store are just some names taking part in the project, all of which already have recycling points that consumers might not be aware of, or feel unnecessary to use. British beauty retailer Boots, for example, has a program where consumers can hand in five empties and spend £10 ($12) in-store, or receive 500 points on the rewards program, which equals £5 ($6) of spending money.
The GBBCU hopes to highlight such existing efforts, providing consumers with an interactive map to highlight where consumers can find local recycling points, proving that recycling can be convenient while still reducing the number of beauty products ending up in landfills.
“So far, the campaign has had a great reception from leading retailers and brands interested in weighing in on the campaign, and we are excited to see the first cross-industry cleanup campaign come to fruition later this year. Any business can get involved, whether highlighting their take-back scheme on our map, educating shoppers, or supporting the movement on social media. Together, we can make a difference,” Kendall continued.
Previously, the British Beauty Council and the Sustainable Beauty Coalition produced the Planet Positive Beauty Guide, which includes easy-to-understand information to help inform consumers on how to avoid purchasing greenwashed products.The guide also includes a comprehensive list of claims made by several brands within the industry, explaining with straightforward descriptions what each means, helping consumers to understand the difference between ingredients that are beneficial to the environment and those that simply sound as if they are. The GBBCU aims to enhance these messages further.
“We aim to raise awareness within our industry, with consumers, and with UK governments, by creating an overarching Framework for Action. This Framework will build upon what already exists and will focus on climate, biodiversity, waste, and water. It will set ambitious targets for the industry to work towards becoming more transparent and accountable to the consumer,” added Jayn Sterland, Chair of the British Beauty Council’s Sustainable Beauty Coalition.
The GBBCU follows multiple worldwide organizations and brands that are taking part in reducing the waste produced within the beauty industry. Notable examples include the 100 businesses, such as L’Oréal and Unilever, that committed themselves to circular business practices through a statement from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation in 2021—a charity effort focusing on creating a circular economy designed to eliminate waste and pollution. Additionally, L’Oréal promised in 2018 to reduce the use of virgin plastics by 33%, as well as eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging in its products by 2025.
Other brands have had recycling initiatives in place for decades and are overhauling their initiatives to increase positive impact. MAC Cosmetics has pushed consumers to recycle empties through its Back to MAC model (established in 1990), where individuals would receive a free lipstick for every six empty brand product containers they brought back to the store. In 2022 alone, 9.3 million lipsticks or 340,000 pounds of empty MAC containers were collected.
The GBBCU replicates campaign models similar to The Pact Collective, a nonprofit focusing on reducing beauty packaging waste and working towards more circular solutions for the industry in collaboration with several brands. As of 2023, The Pact has 153 members across the beauty industry and has hosted 104 programs. Recently, The Pact partnered with beauty brand Saie to amplify its message, showing that collaboration is better than competition. The GBBCU aims to inform consumers so that they are aware of such programs and recycling processes.
Although it produces a significant amount of waste yearly, the beauty industry is committed to putting collectives, programs, and processes in place that promote a circular economy, reduce waste, and encourage recycling. Increasing consumer awareness about broader use of current programs will improve the effects of the recent changes, helping consumers better understand how the beauty industry can move forward and create a more sustainable community.
