Plastic Act: the action plan in the cosmetics sector for sustainable cosmetics packaging

Emmanuel Guichard, General Secretary, FEBEA

Even if cosmetic packaging only represents 5% of plastic packaging in France, many cosmetic companies have already taken individual steps to reduce their plastic footprint and made commitments for the future.
However, at the collective level, the challenge remains huge. This is why the FEBEA wanted to federate and catalyse the energies of all companies, small, medium and large, in order to define a shared ambition and roadmap.
The result of a long process of co-construction, the Plastic Act is a concrete and mutualised action plan for sustainable cosmetic packaging, built around 4 main principles (the 4 “R’s”): reduction, reuse, recycling of plastic packaging and reincorporation of recycled plastic.
With the Plastic Act, the cosmetics sector is the first sector to collectively set ambitious targets* for 2025:

– Reduce the amount of plastic used by 15%, by generalising eco-design, by opting for concentrated formulas and large formats. With the same objective, the sector will get involved in R&D programmes to develop materials that can be substituted for plastic: lightweight glass, waterproof paper/cardboard, etc., by measuring the environmental benefits of these substitutions using the SPICE shared tool.
– Reuse 20% of plastic, in particular by developing 100% recyclable refills, but also by allowing companies of all sizes to develop a bulk offer by developing sanitary standards for filling at the point of sale (deposit, washing of containers, etc.).
– Reincorporate 10 to 25% of plastic into new packaging, by giving all companies access to recycled resins, suitable for cosmetic products.
– Recycle 100% of plastic packaging, by raising consumer awareness of sorting in the bathroom, and by improving the effective recyclability of cosmetic packaging.
With this action plan, the cosmetics sector intends to accelerate its ecological transition towards sustainable packaging.

The conference will be held in French with translation into English.

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