The Body Shop Launches In-store Recycling Scheme

The Body Shop Launches In-store Recycling Scheme

It seems like we hear the mantra almost every day; ‘Reduce waste, recycle more’ and there are more ways than ever to do this in the course of our every day lives. We can now buy clothes made from sustainable materials and swap our unwanted clothes for vouchers in some high street stores, but what about our personal care routines?

Can you honestly say that you recycle your old deodorant cans and shampoo bottles, or do they end up in the bin and bound for landfill?

Many beauty and personal care brands are now doing their bit to encourage us to recycle or refill our used product containers, and The Body Shop is one of them.

The Body Shop-the environmental pioneer

The Body Shop is a bit of a pioneer in all things environmentally-friendly, and the late Dame Anita Roddick was keen to build a business with a social conscience. Look in any of its stores, and you’ll see products packed with natural, ethically sourced ingredients, and not only that, the company has just announced that it’s revamping its in-store recycling scheme to help tackle plastic pollution.

From the 5^th June, the company is launching its ‘Return. Recycle. Repeat.’ initiative in partnership with Plastics For Change. The initiative will allow customers to return their empty beauty product containers in return for a voucher giving money off their next purchase.

Image courtesy of The Body Shop

So customers can take their empty bottles, jars, tubs, tubes, and pots into a selected store and put them in the recycling bins provided. Everyone who brings five clean containers in will get a £5 voucher off their next purchase.

Once customers have returned their empty containers, TerraCycle take them away for recycling. The containers are then repurposed as completely new items like garden furniture and park benches.

But even if you don’t shop at The Body Shop, you can still recycle empty containers from other brands in-store. The only difference is you won’t receive a voucher.

Plastic is a valuable resource

A spokesperson for The Body Shop said that the company has always stood up for its principles which include empowering people and protecting the planet. He added that the partnership with plastics for change will encourage people to see plastic as a valuable and renewable resource which should be used and disposed of responsibly.

You can find out more about the initiative and find participating stores here.