It was 13 years ago that we launched our book, The Green Beauty Bible – and it was our dream then that big brands would one day embrace the ideals we espoused in that book: ingredients that are sustainably resourced, packaging that can be recycled, a lower energy footprint… But also, importantly: creating products that people who are used to making ‘mainstream’ beauty choices would be happy to switch to.

Back then, with one or two exceptions, the brands we featured were all niche and small, and the formulations pretty basic. In their way, they were all making small and important differences. But it’s a fact: when a big company decides to go down a more sustainable route, it makes a HUGE difference.

We are, then, very heartened that today, Garnier – part of the vast beauty empire L’Oréal – launched a report which shows that the values and ideals we shared in that book are (finally!) being widely embraced.

18,000 respondents were polled, revealing…

• 73% of respondents want to be more sustainable in 2021

• Of those who said the last year has made them think differently about their behaviours almost half agree 2020 was a wakeup call to protect the environment

• Nearly three times as many resolving to take action to help the planet than give up alcohol

• Over half of those intending to make an environmental/sustainability resolution say reduction in their use of plastic products is their #1 green priority in 2021

As Garnier’s Global Brand President, Adrien Koskas, says: ‘This report proves that 2020 was a wakeup call to protect our planet. The research looks at eight countries, across four continents and shows that 2020 has acted as a stark reminder that we all need to take steps towards a greener planet.’

Garnier had already been taking steps to move in this direction, first evidenced by the launch of Soil Association-certified skincare, packaged in fully recycled and recyclable bottles. But they’re going further, he says. ‘In 2020 we launched our end-to-end approach to sustainability – Green Beauty - which came with a wave of sustainable innovations, like our first ever solid shampoo bar with zero plastic waste, reusable eco-pads for removing makeup, and this year 100% recycled and recyclable bottles in our Fructis haircare range. Also, we hope to inform our consumers by publishing environmental impact scores of all our haircare products, launched in France and launching in the UK, US and Germany this year. The aim is to empower our consumers to take one green step by making a more sustainable choice.’

Over the coming weeks, you’ll be able to find out via the Garnier website what are the environmental and social impacts of all their hair products, to help make more sustainable choices – covering everything from greenhouse gas emissions, water scarcity, biodiversity and more.

We wish it hadn’t taken a global pandemic for people to wake up to the even bigger and more long-term crisis facing us. But three cheers to Garnier for honestly leading the charge, here, towards a more sustainable future for beauty – making it easy to tread more lightly on this precious planet. (And stay gorgeous, with it.)

So do check out the Green Beauty section of Garnier’s website, here… And if you want to know more, watch the video below.

Prize Draws