Lather. Reduce. Repeat. Taking small steps to reduce the amount of plastic polluting our planet is that easy, but we also want to inspire you with a couple additional reasons why that’s important, and how joining us at Purifico helps reduce waste in more ways than one.
1) In addition to a new, magical way to get top-shelf clean, you may also be looking for ways to reduce waste everyday. Let’s start with plastics, and some mind-blowing facts we’ve learned along the way.
- About 300 million tons of plastic is manufactured annually, half of which is designed for single-use, meaning it likely discarded after using only once.¹
- It’s estimated that the average person goes through about 20 shampoo and body wash bottles a year; so for a family of four, that’s 80 bottles that could be saved from entering a landfill or ocean.
- Climate change and plastic pollution are interconnected—with EarthDay.org reporting that plastic production and disposal resulted in 850 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2019.
- Microplastics, which are small pieces of plastic from items broken down in the ocean, are pervasive. In fact, a recent study published in Nature estimated that 21 million metric tons of small plastic pollution are in the top 200 meters of the Atlantic alone. Two real-world examples: The photo above, taken this June on a beach in the Bahamas, where just about every square foot of a seemingly pristine beach contained these plastic bits; or this ship that sank off of Sri Lanka in 2021. The tons of nurdles—pellets used to make plastic products—in its hold were deposited into the sea and were reportedly washing into the shore as “wave after wave” of plastic.
None of this is good news. But the positive side is that eco-innovators (like us!) are coming up with creative solutions every day, so the millions of consumers out there need to challenge themselves to rethink daily plastic use.
Case in point: In 2020, 326 million people from 177 countries took place in the Plastic Free July Challenge, which reportedly contributed to an estimated total savings of over 2 billion pounds of plastic waste. It’s easy, and empowering, to decrease demand for plastic production: Simply choose products, like one of Purifico’s easy Starter Bundles, or these that we’ve discovered recently:
- Need a new phone case? All the best compostable or upcycled versions can be found here.
- In pod we trust: Applause to one of our favorite sustainable fashion brands, Cariuma (see below), for tipping us off to this, but we cannot wait for these biodegradable condiment pods (made from seaweed) to launch.
- Single-dose skin care: Female founder led skin care brand Common Heir is “all results, no plastic.” Sign us up.
- The most stylish, and lowest carbon footprint: Brazilian skate footwear brand Cariuma has meticulously calculated its carbon footprint of its slip-on IBI, which is reportedly the lowest of any sustainable shoe on the planet.
2) Traditional body wash or shampoo is about 80% water. Think about it! Estimates report that 550 million shampoo bottles are thrown out annually in the U.S., which were mostly filled with water. So you’re paying for a product containing mostly water, that now must be housed in a large plastic bottle—which will likely remain on the earth forever—requiring extra resources to ship and distribute. For us at Purifico, “single-use” is not a dirty word—at least not when referring to our waterless in-shower pods. Our concentrated pods contain everything that you need for a premium clean, and nothing that you don’t. Just pop out a biodegradable pod, watch it magically dissolve, then lather and go.
3) Finally, what about those last, extremely frustrating ounces of shampoo or body wash product that never leave the bottle? Research estimates that up to 5% of personal care products like shampoo is wasted. And, if the bottle isn’t completely rinsed, it can contaminate single-stream recycling machinery (that’s if it ever makes it to the recycling center at all—most plastic doesn’t). We were curious to see how much product is wasted and actually cut into a couple of bottles to see for ourselves, and you can check out the video here [INSERT LINK to video on social media]. Not an easy task, which is also testament to the durability of these plastic bottles, which again will be around…probably forever. Purifico makes it easy by eliminating the plastic bottle in the first place, which is the simplest solution.
Thanks for visiting and learning more about how easy it is to Do More. Please let us know if you have any questions or feedback about Purifico, and I will respond personally.
- Nicole Kaldes, VP of marketing and content (nkaldes@splash-innovations.com)
¹ Source: UN Environment
