As a clean beauty brand, we take our relationship to the planet very seriously. From our packaging, to ingredients sourced, to our growing sustainability efforts, we are committed to creating products that are not only good to your hair and body, but also good for the environment.
Being rooted in Latinx heritage is without a doubt a driving force when it comes to our take on doing the best for you and for the planet. Many of us who grew up in Latin-American households have been forever impacted by the ways our moms, tias, and abuelas re-used everything as if there was no other way to live. Not to mention, for generations, the various cultures have been rooted in nature and mother earth.
We also believe that a huge piece of the puzzle is remaining transparent with our community in all of our continuing efforts for increased sustainability and circularity. In honor of Earth Day, we’ve decided to break down some of those efforts and initiatives.
Why do you use plastic bottles?
We get it. At first glance, it’s easy to assume that other packaging materials such as glass, aluminum or biodegradable packaging would be better for the environment. However, a lot of thought and care went into the decision to make our bottles the way we did. So let’s dive in.
Our bottles are made of at least 30% to 100% post-consumer-recycled PET material (“PCR”), and are recyclable. The fact of the matter is, PCR requires the least amount of energy to be produced and recycled and uses less virgin PET material per product. Another benefit is that PCR is also very light, making our shipments much more carbon efficient. In addition, PCR is sturdy, so we purposely do not add unnecessary packaging materials to protect your shipment along the way.
Also, all plastic is not equal—different types of plastic are carefully categorized by the industry based on how recyclable and reusable they are. There are a total of 7 different plastic codes, and in general, only codes #1 (PET) and #2 (HDPE) are easier to recycle than the other codes. We purposely chose all our PCR to fall within the #1 code, which is the one material that is widely accepted and easily recycled here in the US.
We strongly believe that addressing circularity and longevity is the way forward in sustainability, and lengthening the lifespan of each of our packs is a first step towards that goal. This is not to say that we are not open to changing to methods on this front. Still, we feel confident that we are doing the best we can in this phase to lessen our carbon footprint and extend the life cycles of our products.
Why don’t you use biodegradable packaging?
At this time, PCR is the most suitable packaging option available. It’s durable, recyclable, keeps single-use plastic out of landfills and requires the least amount of energy to be produced and recycled.
While biodegradable plant-based plastic is great in theory, it requires rather sophisticated compost methods, which most do not have access to, and are not recyclable. This means that non-composted biodegradable packages are likely to end up in landfills due to inaccessibility to composting services and the lack of specialized recycling facilities, making it take just as long to break down as regular plastic.
While we’re excited to see more innovative packaging options being developed and offered to consumers, we strongly believe that the recycling industry needs to innovate as well, to make sure that any new materials are being properly disposed of and recycled. Without a proper end-solution, any innovative material will—as most other packaging does—end up in landfill, and negatively contribute to our big waste-problem.
What about carbon emissions?
We’re widely focused on reducing our carbon footprint, both across our supply chain and for our customer shipments. We purposely source most packaging components here in the US, and all our formulas are made on the East Coast of the U.S., minimizing the transit time until the products reach our warehouse and ultimately our community.
In addition, we partner with Carbonfund.org Foundation, a leading carbon offsetting company that allows us to offset all shipments, including all customer and freight shipments.
As of today, we have also integrated with Shop Pay, which—when chosen as the payment method—will automatically carbon offset your order.
What does it mean when you say “clean” ingredients?
When referencing our clean ingredients, we are talking clean for you and for the environment. We strongly believe in creating high-performance, clean products that are good for both.
All our formulations are born at the intersection of farms and labs, featuring clean and natural ingredients, without silicones, sulfates, parabens, phthalates, artificial colorants and a long list of other not-so-great ingredients often found in conventional beauty products.
This intentional formulation of our products is important to us for a few reasons. When it comes to your health, we know that the scalp and forehead are actually 4x more absorbent than the skin on your forearms. The scalp is considered one of the most absorbent parts of the body, meaning potentially harmful ingredients are likely to end up in the bloodstream. That’s why we make sure our products contain all of the good stuff, and none of the bad.
When it comes to the planet, we understand that what happens in the shower doesn’t stay in the shower. All ingredients included in your products bypass wastewater filtration, and thus end up in rivers and seas. You may be surprised to know that many shampoos and conditioners contain microplastics among many other harmful ingredients. Microplastics are so prevalent in cosmetic products because they help to exfoliate, they regulate viscosity so that the products are easily spreadable and feel luxurious on your skin, and they create a film (like the barrier-like coating that plastic silicones leave on your hair to protect it from the elements and make it shine). Once flushed down our pipes, however, these microplastics and other toxic ingredients remain in our environment and they accumulate and harm marine life when aquatic life ingest them.
That’s why we’ve intentionally formulated our products without any potentially harmful ingredients that may not be deemed safe for our environment and waterways overall.
So what?
We understand that sustainability is an ever-evolving practice, and we remain committed to refining and adapting our efforts—always looking to do what’s best for the Earth. We are so appreciative that our community is so aware and concerned with our sustainability efforts and we are committed to evolving and growing in this space as innovations arise.
It is our promise to consciously weave sustainability throughout our brand. In practicing a holistic perspective, we will guide our decision-making by high standards of doing good, while continuing to create magic.
