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Eco-friendly shampoo refills: when the ecological argument doesn’t hold water
You see them everywhere in the aisles of your favorite stores, presented as the new ecological solution to reduce plastic consumption, and yet. Shampoo refills in flexible plastic, just like laundry or soap refills, are really not that ecological. So how can we reduce waste and plastic consumption intelligently? Follow the guide, we’ll explain everything.
The falsely ecological trend of shampoo refills
In recent years, the zero waste trend has been gaining momentum. Indeed, more and more of us are aware of the ecological disaster that awaits us if we do nothing. So we reduce waste, we check labels, we use less plastic. Most brands have also moved towards more responsible consumption. Today you can buy in bulk, use paper bags instead of plastic, or use solid products without packaging.
Among all these initiatives, some are less ecological than one might think, even completely off track. This is the case, for example, with the eco shampoo refill. In the form of a flexible plastic pouch, these refills allow you to keep your shampoo bottle instead of buying a new one. You just buy this pouch containing your usual shampoo, then transfer its contents into your old bottle. Economic and ecological, right? Well, not really.
In fact, these flexible plastic pouches are absolutely not recyclable, unlike some plastic bottles and containers. No sorting: you throw them directly in the trash. Too light to be recycled, they are then incinerated with other household waste. In 2022, selective collection was extended to soft plastics, but the problem remains: they cannot be recycled because of their composition combining several materials. So, is the shampoo refill really such a good idea?
The success of organic shampoo refills: when greenwashing sells
And yet, many people buy into this idea of shampoo refills, convinced they are doing the right thing. They end up buying large quantities of flexible refill pouches that will end up in the trash. But why does it work so well? Quite simply because the brands that sell these refills manipulate customers using false ecological arguments. This is commonly called greenwashing, a misleading marketing method that uses the ecological argument incorrectly to improve its image.
Greenwashing is used in different ways to sell. It can mean using a large communication budget to boast about green actions, insisting on tiny ecological actions instead of making real changes, or highlighting the word organic or a natural ingredient on the product when it is present only in tiny amounts.
These companies know that consumers want to consume better and reduce their waste, and they exploit this to sell. According to a study by Oney and OpinionWay, 90% of European consumers expect brands to commit ecologically and help them consume better.
In the case of organic shampoo refills, the argument is that the production of these soft plastic pouches generates less plastic than a jug or bottle of shampoo. This drastically reduces the weight of plastic, a strong argument when you know that only 28% of plastic was actually recycled in 2020 according to Citeo. True, but this soft plastic still ends up in the trash and never recycled.
What ecological alternative to the eco shampoo refill?
Don’t worry, there are real ecological alternatives to these flexible plastic pouches to avoid buying new shampoo bottles every time. At Hairborist, we offer refillable bottles in our partner hair salons.
How does it work? You first buy a Hairborist shampoo bottle, and when it’s empty, you bring it back to your salon. Your Hairborist hairdresser will then refill your bottle thanks to the large shampoo containers they have, and that’s it. No shampoo refill, no plastic, just bulk! Bonus: you get a small discount on the refilled product to encourage you to continue this ecological approach!
The advantage is that this refill system works with all our liquid products. You can therefore refill your Repair or Renovator pre-shampoo care bottle, your conditioner bottle and even some of our styling products such as Hairtonic or Hairspray. No more plastic, hello bulk!
Why a plastic bottle and not a glass one?
Since Hairborist is committed to an eco-responsible approach and wants to reduce plastic production without using shampoo refills, you may be wondering why our bottles are plastic and not glass. The reason is simple: safety!
Imagine dropping your glass shampoo bottle in the shower. Barefoot and naked, chances are high that you cut yourself and get hurt. Same problem in winter, when you take a very hot shower: your glass bottle could easily explode.
To solve this, we designed PET packaging (polyethylene terephthalate), a very resistant material, and above all 100% recyclable. It is also much less energy-consuming than glass. You can reuse your bottles many times before replacing them, and above all, you don’t risk injuring yourself!
By using our refillable bottles instead of an organic shampoo refill, you engage in a real eco-responsible approach with a genuine impact on plastic production and waste reduction. An eco-friendly haircare routine to protect our planet – sounds good, right?
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