Every company is sustainable these days. Whether that’s due to U.N guidelines like the Sustainable Development Goals or as Adidas’s CEO puts it, ‘if businesses want to succeed, they must focus on their environmental impact’, there’s no denying the shift. Businesses are finding new ways to ‘go green’. This week Garnier is the latest brand to tackle global warming with a campaign focused on educating consumers on how to be sustainable.
The new commitment is a part of a collaboration with National Geographic CreativeWorks with the aim to “give our consumers access to top experts and their advice for living greener everyday,” according to Garnier Global President Adrien Koskas. It will offer educational content about water usage, plastic packaging and other sustainable topics along with tips for consumers to adopt into their every day lives. The first video and article rolled out on October 1st and can be viewed here.
To realise the full power of our continuing journey towards Greener Beauty, Garnier wants to encourage consumers to take green steps too. ~ Garnier’s Global President Adrien Koskas
Garnier’s Impact
As part of the L’Oreal collection of brands, Garnier is a powerhouse in the global hair industry and has crafted itself as a go-to brand thanks to its position in drugstores around the world. In 1999 the Fructis line of hair care products was particularly successful. In the U.S, 2.57 million Americans used Garnier Fructis shampoo and 2.79 million used the conditioners weekly in 2020. Considering that the average American buys 11 shampoos yearly and that these bottles are single use plastic, that’s 44 million single-use plastic bottles that a brand is making for consumers to purchase and dispose of.
While that’s a staggering amount of plastic, it should be taken into account that that those numbers only account for 2 products from a collection of products. Garnier Fructis also offers leave-in conditioners, oils, cremes, hair dyes and more products that are packaged in single-use plastic bottles and boxes. Such is the impact of a global brand. There are a lot of products and plastic packaging which means these brands play a big role in how we impact our planet.
550 million empty shampoo bottles are thrown away each year.
Some research suggest that plastic bottles can take 100 to 400 years to decompose. While the exact length of time it takes for a plastic shampoo bottle to decompose isn’t known, what is known is that in the U.S we throw away nearly 1 billion shampoo and conditioner bottles yearly. And, considering that only 9% of plastic waste that has ever been produced has been recycled, that means that items like hair care products account for a lot of plastic pollution that accumulates in landfills and our oceans.
Garnier’s Sustainable Accomplishments & Goals
There are plans to roll out innovative products, from solid shampoo with fast rinse technology, to cardboard integrated tubes. ~ Adrien Koskas Garnier Global President
Garnier seems to be well aware of its environmental footprint. The company has been making changes to their packaging over the last few years to use more post consumer waste materials and to increase the recycling rate of their bottles and boxes. Some of these initiatives are part of collaborations with companies focused on reducing plastic pollution like the Ocean Conservatory. While you can read the full sustainability report the company puts out yearly, here a few highlights of their accomplishments and goals.
- Shampoo & conditioner bottles are made with 50% post-consumer recycled plastic.
- The caps and pumps of shampoo and conditioner bottles are made of 100% recycled plastic.
- Items are produced in a plant that is powered by ‘no less than 45% renewable energy.’
- Nutrisse cartons are 100% recyclable and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
- Launched a partnership with Terra Cycle to reduce and reuse waste.
- Use ero virgin plastic in packaging by 20205.
- All packaging will be recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025.
- 100% carbon neutral industrial sites by 2025.
Can Beauty Go Green?
Can beauty go green is the question posed by Garnier in their debut eco campaign. The video, a montage of volunteers and National Geographic’s images of the planet is more of a trailer than anything substantial in terms of learning about their impact or how customers can reduce their. So, it still remains to be see how the series will add value to the lives of their consumers.
But, to have a global brand intent on announcing sustainable and green initiatives could have a ripple effect on the beauty industry as a whole. And, if the videos can reach the average consumer, perhaps it can be one step in the right direction to help reduce plastic waste and invest in better products for a better future.
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