The cosmetics industry turns over billions each year, helping people achieve the perfect pout and lash length. But the industry has an altogether more sinister side.
You might not realise the impact your purchasing habits can have on the planet, so we’ve summarised some of the biggest threats and how you can take steps to shop responsibly.
Purchasing environmentally friendly products is a great way to vote with your wallet and let cosmetic companies know what your priorities are. This can ultimately result in them changing the way in which they develop their products.
Animal testing
A tangible concern in the beauty industry is animal testing. 10 million animals suffer and die as a result of cosmetic testing every year – that’s over 27,000 each day. These experiments can majorly change the physiology of the animal, and some experiments even plan for the death of the animal as a way of measuring the treatment.
And though many jurisdictions have now banned animal testing in the cosmetics industry, the fact remains that many ingredients have been purchased from outside of these locations and have still been tested on animals. More insidious yet, many brands claim not to test on animals while still selling their products in places like China, where all products must be tested on animals before they are approved for sale to the public.
Despite the fact that more than fifty forms of non-animal related tests have been validated for use, these methods continue across the world.
However, as we become wiser to the source of the products we buy, cruelty-free products are becoming more popular. As many as 36% of women will only buy from brands who don’t test on animals, for example, so progress is being made.
Pollution
Make-up and other cosmetics are often made with chemical substances that don’t biodegrade. P-phenylenediamine, for example, is a dangerous chemical that can kill plankton and other aquatic life – but it’s still a common ingredient in lipstick and hair dye.
Dioxane, BHA/BHT, Triclocan, Diethanolamine – the list is long (and hard to pronounce), and these chemicals show up regularly within the products we use. Livestock can suffer genetic and reproductive issues when exposed to chemicals. Once they’re in the earth’s water cycle, everything is affected. Studies have found them in agricultural soil and household dust, for example.
As consumers, we can consult the ingredients in the products we buy in order to prevent the environment from being tarnished by these harmful chemicals.
Plastic
A huge majority of cosmetic products are sold in plastic packaging, adding to the build up of plastic bottles and tubs in our landfills and oceans.
Cosmetic packaging must be extra strong to ensure that it is not degraded by the chemicals within the makeup – and packaging that strong takes hundreds of years to break down.
Another consideration is microbeads, which are now banned in the UK, for example. Tiny beads of plastic build up in the ocean and end up in the stomachs of aquatic life.
You can purchase microbead-free products in glass bottles or recycled jars to reduce the impact of plastic on the environment.