Putting a Stop to Single Use Plastics

Here’s an ugly fact about the beauty industry: worldwide, cosmetic manufacturers produce more than 120 billion units of plastic packaging on an annual basis; given the amount of plastic already in the ocean, it’s no wonder that the United Nations projects there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans by 2050. That’s just a short 29 years from now.

For those consumers currently raising young children, just imagine -- a trip to the beach when they’re older might result in more plastic sightings than fish, shells, crabs, snails, dolphins, whales, seals or any other sea life we take for granted today.

Although this picture is, indeed, bleak, all is not lost. Some cosmetic and skincare companies are paying attention, eager to make a change. It just so happens, Blue Monarch is one of them.

Before we look ahead to a brighter future, let’s glimpse back to understand how we got here.

The Trickle Down Effect

For the makeup connoisseurs and the skincare fanatics, beauty products are a routine purchase. To feed this demand, billions of beauty packages are created and sold each year. Just think -- mascara tubes, lipsticks, cleansers, powder compacts -- the list is practically endless.

The Problem?

From these billions of packages, less than 10% are ever recycled. This totals approximately 12 billion products. Sure, that sounds like a lot, but consider these stunning statistics, specific to the beauty industry:

“Only 9% of all plastic waste ever produced has been recycled, and about 12% incinerated and all the rest — 79% — ended up in landfills, dumps, or the natural environment. When it comes to beauty packaging, 95% of it is thrown out after just one use, and only 14% of plastic makes it to a recycling center.”

Every year, around 17.6 billion pounds -- think 57,000 blue whales -- of these single-use beauty materials make their way into the ocean. A larger number than the products that get recycled reside in our oceans. The products that we purchase for our benefit ultimately end up hurting the Earth. To put it in even starker perspective, for every square mile, there are about 46,000 pieces of plastic floating in the ocean. This plastic will not decompose anytime soon.

What Does This Mean for the Sea?

Single-use plastics that could be recycled but end up in our bodies of water affect the world everywhere. Plastic has been found on the shores of every continent in the world. Plastic in the ocean does not just affect the surface of the water. Marine animals, such as sea turtles, whales and dolphins, can become entangled in or swallow it, mistaking it for food. Take turtles, for instance: for 22% of sea turtles, ingesting a single piece of plastic proves fatal.

Even if the floating or sinking plastics are somehow untouched by marine creatures, they are still capable of causing harm. Some synthetic products can carry bacteria capable of disrupting the delicate ecosystem of the world’s oceans.

What Can Be Done?

The EPA has stated that “every bit of plastic ever made still exists.” Take a step back and think about that, trillions of tons of plastic have been produced since 1907.

Steps to start offsetting this damage in order to take better care of the oceans obviously begin with minimizing the use of plastics. You can also:

• Support organizations that address plastic pollution
• Participate (or organize!) local beach clean ups
• Reduce your personal dependence on single use plastics
• Support companies who produce reusable products and/or who refuse to rely on single use plastics: Like us!

Blue Monarch® Goes Green

In an effort to do our part to protect the deep blue, Blue Monarch has not produced a single-use plastic item or sample since October 2019. We are committed to producing a natural skincare product that can be trusted by our customers for its ability to solve skincare concerns without negatively impacting the environment.

Blue Monarch skincare products are plant based and are trusted to be hydrating, protecting, and presented in a package that protects the Earth. Our products can be a soothing part of your nightly routine and a refreshing start to your morning regimen.

Good for you and your skin since the beginning, and now, since 2019, great for the planet, too!

Join the movement to reduce the beauty industry’s reliance on single use plastics! Take our skincare questionnaire to help us learn more about you and your skin. Your skin will thank you… and so will our planet!