Packaging
Packaging is perhaps the most obvious of our sustainability endeavours and definitely something that has gained traction in the media in the last 12 months, probably because it’s the first bit of a product that you see. Zero Waste Week reports that a shocking 120 billion+ units of packaging are produced every year by the cosmetics industry, so as a brand within this industry, it is our responsibility to reduce the environmental impact of our portion of that number.
It’s important to note that our approach to packaging is far from perfect, mainly because a perfect solution is yet to exist. What we can say is that we’re on the forefront of innovation, holding direct relationships with all of our suppliers, meaning that as soon as materials or solutions become available, we’re ready to adopt them. It’s a work in progress and a continuous evolution that we meticulously scrutinise to ensure we are always doing the best we possibly can.
Glass
70% of BYBI’s packaging is made from glass. We’ve settled on glass because it is infinitely recyclable and derived from natural raw materials which are in abundance, such as sand. Unlike plastic, it does not lose integrity as it’s recycled, meaning it could be recycled into the same bottle or jar, over and over again. Also unlike plastic, there are no issues around microplastics or toxicity within our oceans or wider environment.
We print directly onto our glass rather than using adhesive labels. This is because a) it makes it easier for you to recycle as you don’t have to remember to remove the label and b) those labels are usually coated in plastic and not recyclable themselves.
Glass is not a perfect material though, which we’re aware of. Its drawbacks include its weight and the carbon emissions associated with having to ship it. It is also very energy intensive when being produced as a virgin material, as so much heat is required to melt the materials needed to create it. This is counterbalanced by the significant reduction in energy, oil and carbon emissions for the production of recycled glass, so we look to use recycled glass wherever possible.
BYBI in glass:
- Babe Balm Bronze
- Bakuchiol Booster
- Blueberry Booster
- Buriti Booster
- CBD Booster
- Mega Mist
- Strawberry Booster
- Swipe Clean
Bioplastic
Glass is not always practical or possible; consistencies such as balms and gels are not always safe or convenient when housed in glass. In these instances, we also use a bioplastic material derived from sugarcane, which we believe is a more sustainable alternative to standard PET. The supplier transforms sugarcane into ethanol, which is then used in place of petroleum to create the plastic material. Sugarcane is a renewable resource that is grown in abundance. The growing of the sugarcane absorbs CO2, making this a carbon neutral produced material. The sugarcane we use has the same properties, performance and application versatility of polyethylene from fossil origin - which means it also can be recycled within the same chain of recycling traditional polyethylene. It is not biodegradable, so the CO2 captured by the product remains fixed throughout the life cycle of the plastic.
The material is by no means perfect but it’s the best solution for us right now. We believe that the material’s benefits in its reduced carbon emissions, renewability and degradability, make it a better option than standard plastic.
BYBI in sugarcane:
- Babe Balm
- Buffer
- Plumper
- Smooth & Soothe
- Crystal Clear
- C Caf Cream
- Mini Babe Balm
Grasspaper
Grasspaper is a new and innovative material that we discovered from a supplier in Germany and we now use for all of our ecomms packaging on bybi.com (the boxes that carry your BYBI products to you). Grass pulp is significantly more sustainable than the traditional wood pulp - firstly just think about how quickly grass grows compared to trees!
Energy: The production of grasspaper uses up to 80% less energy than that of wood pulp. It needs 136 kW/h of energy per ton vs. 6,000 kW/h per ton for wood pulp.
Emissions: Lower energy = less emissions. Grasspaper saves up to 4,800 tons of CO2 emissions.
Water: Grasspaper uses just 1 litre of water per ton vs. 3,000 litres per ton of wood pulp that's used for paper.
Your Bybi order will arrive packaged in a grasspaper box and wrapped in grasspaper tissue. It is fully recyclable, just like normal paper.
Paper gift bags
There’s no denying that everyone loves a cute travel pouch and they make the perfect addition to a skincare gift for your loved ones. What we don’t love however, is the rise in popularity of plastic makeup bags (*cough bubblewrap pouches cough*) that are produced from virgin materials and often unrecyclable. What’s worse, they’re often sent out with every single order.
BYBI’s take on the travel pouch are our eco-pouches, which are made from paper, cotton and metal. You get one completely free when you order a BYBI Bundle, our entirely customisable gift set option, on bybi.com. The bags are fully recyclable and come in 5 killer colours.
Recyclability
97% of BYBI packaging is recyclable. The only part that is not is the pump on Mega Mist and this is because a recyclable version does not yet exist. We’re working on it! For information on how to recycle each component of your packaging, head to the individual product pages.
Circular recycling
We have just launched a circular recycling scheme for our Boosters, where we take back your empty bottles to reuse. If you order a Booster, it will arrive with a returns label. Once you’ve finished the product, pop the empty bottle back into your grasspaper box and return them to us. We’ll sterilise them before they then begin life again as another Booster.
Circular recycling is really the ideal situation when it comes to sustainable packaging. Not only does it mean that bottles are 100% recycled, it negates the need for any virgin materials to be produced at all. We’re trialling it with the Boosters with the view to eventually roll this out across the entire range.
BYBI circular recycling:
- Bakuchiol Booster
- Blueberry Booster
- Buriti Booster
- CBD Booster
- Strawberry Booster
- Babe Balm Bronze
- Swipe Clean
- Mega Mist
- Mini Mega Mist
- Mini Swipe Clean