How The Beauty Industry Is Shifting To Become More Sustainable

 Just like many other industries the beauty industry has felt the pressure to become more sustainable. Statistics have revealed that the global beauty industry generates over 120 billion units of plastic packaging, with only 9% of the packing being recycled. With most beauty products being made of non-recyclable plastic packaging, this industry is surprisingly wasteful to many make up users, being bottom of the priority list when it comes to adding sustainability into their daily lives.

However, with the effects of pollution and global warming being more prominent everyday, it has become increasingly more important to consumers to start paying attention to the waste in their everyday lives whilst companies are facing increasing pressure from legislation to make changes to their products. This has resulted in significant changes within the beauty industry with movement towards transparency, ethical sourcing and biodegradable materials to create a more sustainable and circular economy and bettering the environment.

Continue reading if you want to find out more about the beauty industry’s new sustainability focus and how it is making strides in 2026.

Makeup Brushes on a canvas bag - Imave Via Pexels

Ecofriendly Packaging

As mentioned previously, packaging is one of the main sources of pollution in the beauty industry. Many makeup products, including concealers, mascara, and makeup removal products, are made from thick and unrecyclable materials. For many individuals, these are used daily, thus having to be replaced every few months, creating a lot of unnecessary waste. This waste then makes its way into landfills, which not only is damaging for wildlife, but also releases harmful CO2 when burned, contributing to global warming. Looking into the ethics of pollution further also highlights eastern vs western inequalities, where developing countries in the global east are largely affected by pollution and landfill affecting the health of the local people. This highlights the global and societal impact of plastic products.

For these reasons, the popularity of eco-conscious companies has grown. This includes brands abandoning plastic for more decomposable materials, such as glass or cardboard and reusable materials, such as aluminium for makeup products and beauty products. As well as this, many companies are also offering refills and buy-back recycling schemes for products such as lip gloss, which means that any plastic packaging has an extended life cycle and products are recycled properly. 

Bio-based and Natural Ingredients 

Just like in food and consumable products, consumers now want naturally derived ingredients in their makeup and beauty products, not only to care for their skin but also for sustainability reasons. Just like in many medical industries, water waste and chemical waste are a big part of the research and production for beauty products. Many of these chemicals are then released into the seas and waters, harming humans and animals alike. In addition to this, the chemical trials when producing make-up products need a lot of extra pure water, which produces large amounts of C02 and water waste. 

Through using naturally occurring ingredients such as beeswax, mica and jojoba oil, it cuts down on chemical waste that is damaging to the environment, as well as being more beneficial for the health of the wearer's skin. As well as this, when products are then disposed of at the end of their life cycles, it is more beneficial for the environment to use naturally occurring products, which can decompose and disintegrate naturally into the environment. 

Greenwashing

Although there are brands and companies making drastic changes within the beauty industry, there remains a huge problem with greenwashing. Just in the fashion industry, with brands like Primark, there is also a serious issue with greenwashing in the makeup industry. This is usually seen with major brands such as Maybelline, claiming to make efforts in sustainability, but only for these brands to continue to be the main polluters. This is not only deceiving for the consumer, but is further detrimental to the environment, as consumers are buying these products under the guise of helping the environment.

To try to avoid falling for greenwashing efforts, there are a few steps that you can take. This includes ensuring that you research brands before buying from them, to see how they are actually impacting the environment, as well as crucially thinking about the claims that brands are making. Those claiming that their products are made from 30% recycled plastic, consumers should ask themselves, ‘Is this actually impactful or is this just a marketing tactic?’ 

Final thoughts

The beauty industry has come a long way in terms of sustainability; however, just like in other industries, there is a long way to go for this industry to become truly sustainable, reducing its environmental impact and bettering the world for good. Continued consumer vigilance against greenwashing and demanding transparency from major polluters is essential to drive necessary systemic change and ensure a truly circular economy.

Thank you for reading!

This post was generously donated by Darcy Fowler