Aveda Store

We believe there is no responsible alternative to doing business other than through the pursuit of environmental sustainability and this belief guides every decision we make. we find inspiration for doing so in nature and believe that nature is not merely something to be cherished and protected, but also should be emulated as a model of sustainability. we also believe that profit and environmental responsibility will increasingly work together as more industries find out that “nature works” for both sustainability and the bottom-line.

aveda’s approach to packaging

We are proud to have been the first beauty company using 100% post consumer recycled PET.  Now more than 85% of our skin care and hair styling PET bottles and jars contain 100% post consumer recycled materials.

With every package we develop, we’re mindful of our environmental footprint and work to minimize our packaging and maximize our use of recyclable and post consumer recycled materials.

our guiding principles

This means we:

• consider the life cycle analysis when developing packaging options
• reduce the size, weight and production processes of packaging wherever possible
• offer packaging that can be recycled whenever possible
• use the most environmentally sound materials and as much post-consumer recycled (PCR) content as commercially possible without affecting the efficacy of the product.
• use renewable energy to manufacture and fill our packaging in Blaine
• challenge our packaging partners to meet the same standards

how we walk the walk

Our strongest initiative is our effort to use post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials in all our packaging. We can’t guarantee that our packaging will be recycled, but we can do our part, insuring that the material it’s made of will now have the chance of another life, rather than going to a landfill.

Today, 90% of our high density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic bottles use a minimum of 80% PCR, made from milk bottles, and two of our new products – InvatiTM Exfoliating Shampoo and Stress-FixTM Body Lotion – are packaged in 100% PCR HDPE bottles. By our calculation, it saves us over 600 tons of virgin plastic each year (HDPE, or PET). We also use PET from recycled soda and water bottles for many of our bottles and jars. Bottles with 80% or greater PCR make up nearly 90% of all retail and professional plastic bottles for Aveda.  The remaining packaging is either glass, which is frequently recyclable, or plastic tubes that are not yet accepted by municipal recycling programs.

We’re also working to expand recycling initiatives (i.e. what can be recycled) wherever we can play a part. In 2008, we pioneered the first ever rigid plastic caps recycling program in the United States to raise awareness to the alarming amounts of plastics polluting our planet. Our program inspired vast numbers of people to collect caps, and together we prevented approximately 145 million caps from entering our waterways, oceans and landfills. The program also helped support positive change in the industry with many municipalities across the U.S. now accepting caps-on recycling.  In 2015, we ended our caps collection to support the caps-on movement and to advocate for its adoption everywhere. 

 

packaging with plastic derived from plants

FIRST PRESTIGE BEAUTY COMPANY TO COMBINE PCR AND BIOPLASTIC IN A PLASTIC TUBE.

We use 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) material as much as we can.* When we can’t use it, we are starting to combine PCR with bioplastic—as we did in our dry remedy™ moisturizing conditioner and moisturizing masque tubes.

The bioplastic we use is a biopolyethylene derived primarily** from sugarcane. Bagasse is the fibrous byproduct that remains after sugarcane stalks are crushed for sugar production. The bagasse is used as fuel for the production of ethanol, a main ingredient used to produce polyethylene. Sugarcane is a quickly renewable, and thus sustainable, resource. Bioplastic may be recycled†, although the recycling of tubes is limited, so please contact your local recycling program.

*More than 85% of our skin care and hair styling PET bottles and jars contain 100% post-consumer recycled materials.
**Bioplastic is 96% plant derived and 4% petrochemical.
† Because bioplastic is chemically identical to ordinary polyethylene (HDPE or LDPE), it can also be recycled in the same manner as these plastics.