TerraCycle is an innovative company in the fight against waste, and offers recycling solutions for waste considered "difficult to recycle".
For beauty professionals, TerraCycle has created a line of "Zero Waste Boxes" to transform cosmetic waste into a new raw material used in the manufacture of new objects, thus limiting the need to extract oil to create new virgin plastic.
This solution will prevent unrecycled waste from being sent to landfills where it remains for years, taking up a lot of space and sometimes releasing chemicals that are harmful to the environment, or from being incinerated and producing harmful gases. In the worst case, this waste can also end up in oceans and rivers, adding to the problem of environmental pollution.
Indeed, not all cosmetics can be "traditionally" recycled: the sorting instructions may vary according to the department or the municipality, and not all products accepted in the sorting bin can be recycled, often for reasons of economic opportunities. This is often the case for products made of several materials, such as make-up products.
The Zero Waste Box allows the company to lighten the environmental footprint of its professional activity, but also to raise the awareness of its employees on the subject of plastic pollution and to offer customers a recycling solution, to improve their rate of frequentation and loyalty.
To put in the zero waste box:
- Packaging for body products such as sunscreens, shower gels and creams, moisturizers and hand and foot care products
- Hair product packaging such as shampoo and conditioner bottles, masks and oils, gels and foams
- Packaging for facial products such as make-up removers and cleansers, masks and scrubs, moisturizers, anti-aging creams and lip care products
- Makeup products such as foundations, eyeliners, mascaras and lipsticks
- Other cosmetic products: Empty perfume bottles, empty nail polish bottles, empty nail polish remover bottles
How does it work?
The boxes are available on the "Zero Waste Box" website. They are delivered to the site, where staff and/or customers can fill them with accepted waste. Once filled, you can use the pre-paid, pre-applied shipping labels to return the boxes to TerraCycle where they will be sorted and the waste sent for processing. The price of each zero waste box covers the cost of the box, shipping, storage in the materials storage and processing center, as well as the cost of transportation and waste sorting.
TerraCycle then works with one of our partners who transforms the waste into a reusable raw material. The waste sent for recycling is shredded, washed and turned into agglomerates or granules. These pellets can then be melted down and molded by manufacturers to create new products such as planters, soap dishes or watering cans.
Please note:
Retailers have the ability to customize the boxes with their own branding to encourage customer traffic and engagement. They can also benefit from internal and external communication support.
