The British Beauty Council’s Sustainable Beauty Coalition launches ‘The Great British Beauty Clean Up’
The beauty industry is taking a united stand against waste with the launch of ‘The Great British Beauty Clean Up’ on 3rd March. Spearheaded by the British Beauty Council’s Sustainable Beauty Coalition, the campaign is supported by over 50 major retailers, brands, and industry professionals—including Boots, John Lewis, Tesco, L’Oréal, Cult Beauty, LOOKFANTASTIC, ELEMIS, and L’Occitane.
This landmark initiative aims to address the beauty sector’s ongoing packaging waste crisis, as new research from the British Beauty Council reveals that 86% of plastic beauty packaging is not recycled. Of all packaging, only 14% of empties makes it to a recycling plant and ultimately only 9% is actually recycled.
In addition, in 2023 research found that despite 79.3% of consumers considering sustainability when purchasing beauty products, only 23.4% currently use refillable skincare products. The campaign seeks to bridge this gap by promoting education, recycling programs, and industry-wide sustainability efforts.
The Great British Beauty Clean Up will focus on educating consumers on how to properly dispose of their empty beauty packaging. It will emphasise the importance of refill and reuse while also clarifying what can and cannot be recycled at home. Many beauty items, including small packaging (such as travel minis and mascara tubes), composite materials (like makeup palettes and lipstick cases), and non-recyclable materials (such as toothpaste tubes and lotion pumps), often end up in landfills due to improper disposal.
To facilitate recycling, the British Beauty Council has revamped its interactive recycling map, highlighting drop-off locations for hard-to-recycle beauty packaging across the UK.
Retailers and brands step up
Several leading retailers are launching initiatives to support the campaign:
- Boots is highlighting its ‘Recycle at Boots’ scheme, available in over 800 stores. With more than 330,000 registered users, it is the industry’s most generous recycling initiative, offering 500 Boots Advantage Card Points (worth £5) for every five items recycled when spending £10 in-store.
- L’Oréal is promoting its Maybelline recycling program, available in over 1,500 UK stores, including Sainsbury’s, Superdrug, and Tesco. The brand’s recycling points will be prominently featured on the British Beauty Council’s map.
- John Lewis is encouraging customers to participate in its BeautyCycle program, rewarding shoppers who recycle beauty empties with vouchers to spend on B-Corp certified brands such as Medik8 and ELEMIS.
- ELEMIS will amplify awareness through in-store communications at its London locations, No.23 Monmouth Street and The House of ELEMIS. The brand is also introducing a new customer loyalty initiative to encourage recycling.
- Cult Beauty and LOOKFANTASTIC, owned by The Hut Group, will promote their ‘recycle:me’ program, which allows customers to send empties via Royal Mail doorstep collection or drop them at over 14,000 locations across the UK.
The campaign will run throughout March, aligning with key global sustainability dates, including Waste Week (3rd–9th March), Global Recycling Day (18th March), and the United Nations International Day of Zero Waste (30th March). With participation from mass-market and independent beauty brands alike, the initiative aims to make a lasting impact on sustainable beauty practices in the UK.
For more details and to locate recycling points, visit the British Beauty Council’s interactive recycling map at: https://britishbeautycouncil.com/recycling-points/.
