Jessica Alba [1] created the Honest Company 10 years ago, and Honest Beauty [2] came along a few years after that. At the time, offering clean beauty products [3] at drugstore prices was a novel concept. Since then, the clean category has exploded, and Honest has continued to grow right along with it. However, while Alba's team has worked hard to improve the formulas as new ingredients became available, there haven't been major packaging changes [4] — until now.
"We did a massive update to our beauty line," Alba told POPSUGAR. "Finally, it's possible to have more sustainable packaging."
The packaging upgrades include PCR plastic, tin, aluminum, and glass — depending on which format works better for the product and formula. And the boxes are now made of tree-free paper. "It's made from upcycled sugarcane by-product," she said. "Normally, it would get burned or put in the garbage, so it's taking trash and turning it into a product, instead of using a virgin tree. We're not using any trees at all [in our new packaging]."
While buying Honest Beauty [5] is now a more sustainable choice, Alba also has some more general advice for sustainability:
1) Think about the life of the product you're purchasing, and be realistic about how long you'll use it. "And if you have everyday things you know you're going to run through, think about a way to repurpose that packaging," she said. "My mom was famous for the idea that when you're done with your jeans or when they're high-waters, you turn them into cut-off shorts. And then we'd wash them down, and we'd put patches on them. There are ways to make things your own, transform them, instead of just throwing them away."
2) Avoid plastic. "Try to be conscious of the plastic that's in, on, and around you, and try to reduce the plastic you're purchasing overall," Alba said.
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3) BYO reusable water bottle. "It should be an extension of you like your phone is," she said. "Before when I would walk around with my reusable water bottle, people would think I was so extra. Now it's so common. Take that water bottle with you, be proud." (She's grateful to VSCO girls everywhere for popularizing the Hydro Flask [8].)