Focus on Hair and Make Up: Packaging

• Cheap to produce – keeps costs down for consumer
• Fewer  CO2 emissions to produce than glass (new or recycled)
• Lighter to carry and transport than glass, less CO2 in transportation
• Can be recycled
• Safer in certain environments (ie: in showers or near hard surfaces where glass might break if it falls)

• Extraction of crude oil is damaging to the environment and impacts on biodiversity loss
• Contributes to plastic pollution
• Leaching of toxic chemicals*certain plastics
• Finite number of times plastic can be recycled
• Not enough plastic is recycled

• Breaks down faster
• Safer in certain environments (ie: in showers or near hard surfaces where glass might break if it falls)

• Only degrades under specific conditions
• Is still plastic, and degrades to a micro-plastic
• Cannot be recycled
• Potential leaching of toxic chemicals into the environment after degradation period

   

• Made from renewable feedstock
• Degrades in the environment *under specific environmental conditions
• Lighter to carry and transport than glass, less CO2 in transportation
• Safer in certain environments (ie: in showers or near hard surfaces where glass might break if it falls)
• Developments in R&D of bio-feedstocks could mean this is a good option in the not too distant future.

• Feedstock often grown on land that could be designated to grow food for human consumption
• Genetically modified crops – negative impact on soil and biodiversity
• Not all bio-plastics can be recycled
• CO2 emissions from harvesting crops need to be taken into consideration

renewable feedstocks – organic compounds that can be replenished as quickly as they are used.

• 100% recyclable without degradation over time
• Transparent yet impermeable
• Higher recycling rate than plastic
• Inert – won’t react to contents
• Due to high recycling rate, less pressure on natural resources
• Easy to clean out

• High CO2 and VOC (volatile organic compounds) emissions, water use in manufacture of glass
• Heavy to carry and transport, increased CO2 emissions
• Broken glass (incl. containers) are not recyclable in regular recycling
• Risk of breaking
• Not made from renewable feedstock (albeit abundant in nature)

While research and data show that glass manufacture and production can actually mitigate CO2 emissions, this consideration is for glass used to seal and insulate buildings but is not necessarily relevant to bottle manufacture.

While glass is theoretically recyclable endlessly, most recycled glass is not returned to the system to make more glass jars, instead, the majority of recycled glass becomes aggregate to make roads. There is only an average of 20% recycled material in glass packaging.

Also, not all glass is accepted for recycling. If it is coated, frosted or unusually coloured, it’s not recyclable.

Biodegradable and made from a renewable source. Make sure it’s not coated in non-biodegradable resin or lacquer. Can only hold dry products.

While assumed more environmentally friendly, because of its ability to degrade quickly, paper manufacture requires high energy and water outputs. Also, if paper is coated in plastic to strengthen it, it is no longer biodegradable or recyclable. Look for FSC certified packaging or grass paper.

Aluminium is 100% recyclable, and 75% of aluminium output produced since the 19th century is still in use today. However, this is only the case if the contents can be completely emptied, which means lots of cosmetic aluminium tubes risk not being recycled.