Your hair, your planet: a guide to building a more sustainable haircare routine
Creating a sustainable haircare routine is not just about the products you choose. By making a few simple switches you could save water, reduce plastic and get great results for your hair at the same time. Here’s how.
Don’t be afraid to start small
It’s important to start by saying that eco fatigue is real and trying to create a perfectly sustainable or zero waste haircare routine overnight might feel like a lot of pressure. So be kind to yourself. Even small changes to reduce your ecological footprint add up over time, and the more people who get involved, the more the impact is multiplied.
How to audit your current haircare products
One of the most straightforward things you can do to reduce the impact of your haircare routine is to choose brands committed to sustainability. Don’t rely on vague claims and marketing language such as ‘eco friendly’ or even ‘free from’, which may appear on packaging. Instead look for factual information such as certifications or specific claims about biodegradability or natural origins ingredients.
Packaging plays a huge part in a product’s sustainability too so make sure that you’re choosing brands that use minimal packaging, made from recycled or renewable sources that can be recycled. Even better, try switching to a refillable shampoo to encourage reuse before recycling.
Understanding certifications for sustainable beauty brands
As regulations become tighter and more brands want to reassure consumers of their sustainability credentials, the number of certifications has increased - making it tricky to understand what to look for.
Different labels and logos mean different things, and it’s worth doing a bit of investigation to see which ones insist on the standards you want to see from your products.
As an example, B Corp certification standards<link to relevant page> have recently been updated and are now based on seven key Impact Topics. This includes Environmental Stewardship & Circularity, Climate Action, and Human Rights. Brands have to meet minimum criteria across all seven to qualify, and must commit to improving their score over time.
Other certifications and standards you can look out for include:
- Regenerative Organic CertifiedTM, which ensures ingredients are sourced from farms practicing Regenerative Organic Agriculture to restore soil health and ecosystems.
- Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which ensures paper or cardboard packaging is made from wood sourced from forests that have been responsibly managed.
- ISO 16128 and OECD 301, which govern the definition and use of the terms ‘natural’ and ‘biodegradable’ respectively.
Clever ways to save water when you shower
There are many ways to save water at home, and your haircare routine can play a big part in reducing your water consumption. The longer you spend in the shower, the more water you use, so try not to linger for longer than you have to. Turning the flow off while you lather your hair is another way to save water.
When you are washing your hair, leave-in products are a great choice for getting through your routine faster and using less water, since they don’t require rinsing.
Proper disposal and recycling for haircare packaging
We’ve already touched on the fact that haircare product packaging can play a big part in how sustainable it is, so the less packaging your chosen brands have, the better. Whatever you decide, make sure that as much packaging as possible is recyclable and do dispose of it responsibly.
Look out for recycling symbols which should indicate the type of material that the packaging is made of, and follow the rules for recycling these materials in your area. Make sure packaging is rinsed well and separate out components where appropriate so as to avoid contaminating a recycling stream.
Even better, consider whether a product can be refilled - as with our Essential Haircare shampoo refills available for the MOMO/, LOVE SMOOTHING/, LOVE CURL/, MINU/ and NOUNOU/ families - or even reused. The Essential Haircare packaging follows eco design principles, and can be repurposed as storage holders or plant pots, promoting a mindset of creative reuse, even before recycling.
Supporting truly sustainable beauty and haircare brands
Supporting brands that invest in sustainable ingredients and practices is not only a great way to positively impact your own ecological footprint. It also sends out an important message about the environmental standards consumers expect, encouraging all brands to work together to push the industry forward towards ever greater sustainability.
Remember, it’s important not to be too swayed by marketing claims which might not be all they seem. Do your research to make sure that the reality matches the hype. Brands should embrace transparency to help consumers make good choices. For example, many will produce impact reports detailing their current efforts and plans for the future.
At Davines, sustainability has been at the heart of what we do for many years. As well as being part of the B Corp movement since 2016, we have created a number of our own initiatives in an effort to push not only ourselves but the whole beauty industry towards greater sustainability. For example, in 2022 we founded the B Beauty Coalition to share best practice and celebrate positive impact within our sector.
And in 2021, in collaboration with the Rodale Institute, we launched the European Regenerative Organic Centre (EROC) - the first research, education and dissemination center in Italy and Europe in the field of regenerative organic agriculture led by a cosmetics company. EROC is focused on expanding the supply of regenerative organic ingredients, training farmers, and pushing the frontiers of sustainability through research.
Thank you for making more sustainable choices
You should now feel much more confident and equipped to make good choices for your hair and for the planet, building a sustainable or minimalist haircare routine using beauty brands that genuinely care.
You may feel that you are just one person but at Davines we believe that every individual can make a difference and that if we work together, we can make a significant impact on the world and all who live in it.
If you want more information and guidance on choosing the right products and techniques, contact your local Davines salon expert.
