Have you ever wondered what “ready to recycle” means when it comes to cosmetic packaging? Take care of yourself, because this term may surprise you.
“Recycle-ready” refers to packaging designed for future recycling systems that do not yet exist.
Essentially, brands claim environmental friendliness by betting on future infrastructure improvements rather than current capabilities.
Last week, we interviewed Alexander Kwapis of FusionPKG about the intricacies of cosmetic packaging design and the future of sustainable beauty.
In this week’s episode of the Green Beauty Conversations podcast, host Lorraine Dallmeier, Chartered Environmentalist and Biologist, reveals how “recycle-ready” is just the latest in greenwashing tactics. It challenges listeners to rethink the impact of their beauty choices and calls on brands to shift responsibility away from immediate action.
“Recyclable packaging is designed for a future that doesn’t exist yet. It’s a misleading promise that shifts responsibility away from manufacturers and onto hypothetical future systems.”
– Lorraine Dallmeier, CEO of Formula Botanica
Key conclusions:
- Understanding ‘ready to recycle’: Discover the real meaning behind recycling-ready packaging and why it’s more about future promises than today’s realities. Lorraine highlights how this term misleads consumers by implying current recyclability.
- Greenwashing uncovered: Learn how brands are using “recycle-ready” as a greenwashing tactic, shifting responsibility to future recycling infrastructures that don’t even exist yet. This episode calls for transparency and immediate action from the beauty industry.
- The reality of plastic waste: Explore shocking statistics on global plastic waste. With only a small percentage of plastic being recycled and much ending up in landfills or in nature, Lorraine stresses the urgent need for real solutions over empty promises.
- Monomaterial misconceptions: Lorraine discusses how some brands claim that using mono-materials in their packaging makes them ‘recyclable’. While mono-materials are theoretically easier to recycle, without the proper infrastructure, they still end up in landfills, dispelling the myth that this approach is a sufficient solution.
- Call to action: Lorraine challenges listeners to ditch brands that use “recycle-ready” and support truly sustainable practices. He urges everyone to support truly eco-friendly brands and push for a circular economy where waste is minimized and nature is regenerated.
Join Lorraine as she passionately analyzes the trend for recycling and calls for a shift towards direct beauty sustainability efforts. Listen to the full episode to understand why we need to move beyond misleading claims and towards a more sustainable future.
Thank you for joining us on this episode of the Formula Botanica Green Beauty Conversations podcast. If you enjoyed listening, please share, subscribe and review this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Youtube so that more people can enjoy the show. Don’t forget to follow and connect with us at Facebook and Instagram.
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Lorraine Dallmeier is a biologist, certified environmentalist, and CEO of Formula Botanica, the award-winning online organic cosmetics school. Read more about Lorraine and the Formula Botanica team.
