Blue Care
Trend description
Gen Z consumers are concerned with global challenges and are looking for ocean-safe and ocean-positive beauty and personal care products. Caring for the ocean has become widespread trend, with ocean pollution being a global issue.
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Trend drivers
Ocean pollution has been a big focus in the last decade, and it is not difficult to understand why. Covering 70% of our earth and playing a significant role in the global carbon cycle, the sea is essential for life on earth. Each year 8 to 9 million tons of plastic find their way into the world's oceans, and it has been reported that by the year 2050, the amount of plastic in the sea will outnumber the number of fish. The largest source of plastic pollution is single-use plastic, such as lids, cups, straws, and packaging. According to the EPA, plastic is so indestructible that "every bit of plastic ever made still exists" and can take thousands of years to break down.
There has never been a greater focus on ocean pollution than now, and consumers are demanding more sustainable products now than ever. Netflix documentaries such as Sea Spicery, Mission Blue, and Blackfish have increased consumer awareness around ocean pollution. This significant consumer shift has made many brands think about their impact on the ocean.
Gen Z and Millennials are most concerned with global challenges. According to a study by First Insight, 73% of Gen Z reported that they were willing to pay more for sustainable products, with 54% saying they would pay more than a 10% increase in price for a sustainably made product. .
According to a 2021 study conducted by Deloitte, 40% of Gen Z and Millennials believe that more people will commit to taking action to address climate change after the pandemic. Gen Z is adopting more sustainable behavior than any other group. 50% have reduced how much they buy, and 45% have stopped purchasing certain products because of environmental concerns, according to a 2022 Deloitte study. Research shows that women have a higher level of empathy, which leads them to be more socially responsible, care about environmental problems, and thereby adopt environmental behavior. Two major popular zero-waste e-commerce retailers, Plastic Freedom and Package Free Shop, say that 90% of their customers are women but still use a gender-neutral marketing strategy.
The world stands at the crossroads of a climate crisis which has the potential to impact every industry and every human on the planet. The full consequences of global warming remain an unknown, but sustainability worries are already changing the attitudes, behaviors, and expectations of consumers around the globe. Blue beauty is a global movement founded by Founder Jeannie Jarnot in 2018. Blue beauty is going beyond other beauty trends, such as green or clean beauty, and it isn't just about using clean, sustainably sourced ingredients. Clean beauty is about using non-toxic ingredients for our skin, but that does not mean that these ingredients are not harming the environment when washed down the drain.
Blue Beauty
Blue Beauty is finding ways to regenerate, improve and repair, and it also evolves around the impact packaging has on our marine life. But there is more to blue beauty than being ocean friendly. Blue beauty is safe for the environment, which includes being ocean safe, and sustainably sourced to reduce carbon footprint – but are also looking at how their practices can have a net positive effect on the environment.
Blue beauty is about limiting plastic waste and protecting the oceans from chemicals found in beauty products. Paula Chin, Sustainable Materials Specialist at WWF-UK explains: 'The key is to identify beauty products where the packaging is refillable or reusable for another purpose; support brand and retailer initiatives who encourage the return of packaging for recycling purposes and ensure that where packaging is unavoidable, it contains recycled materials as this can reduce the overall carbon impact'". Furthermore, she explains that more than 120 billion units of cosmetics packaging are produced globally every year, with the majority of them not being recyclable.
The beauty world is now making significant changes to become a part of the blue beauty movement. One of those brands built upon the concept of blue beauty is One Ocean Beauty. One Ocean Beauty uses blue biotechnology to source its ingredients. The brand takes the natural molecules from living marine organisms and reproduces them through sustainable blue biotech and bio-fermentation. With the production being sustainable and their product packaging 100% recyclable, the brand truly focuses on protecting the ocean.
The brand has partnered with Oceana, an organization dedicated to protecting and restoring the world's oceans. Together, they have saved over 25,000 square miles of deep-sea corals from destructive fishing, removed deadly drift gillnets, and banned polystyrene foam in Virginia and Washington.
Another company that has the ocean at its heart is Osea. The brand creates clean, seaweed-infused skincare and body care. Their products are formulated with seaweed – aka marine plants and algae, due to being a powerful superfood rich in vitamins and minerals. The ocean is the inspiration for the brand that uses naturally derived ingredients chosen from their safety and efficacy and is backed by science. However, Osea is taking its mission to protect the environment further than being climate neutral. The brand has become the first ocean-positive beauty brand by partnering with the organization SeaTrees, a local non-profit specializing in conserving and restoring marine environments. For every ton of carbon, the company offsets, it's investing in coastal restoration projects that extract carbon from the atmosphere.
Picture: Hailey Bieber Instagram
Picture: One Ocean Beauty
Picture: Osea
Ocean Safe Sunscreen
An estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen ends up in the oceans annually. Several studies have shown that the two most common ultraviolet filters, oxybenzone and octinoxate, may have the most harmful effect. A 2016 study of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology found that the toxic effects of sunscreen chemicals caused bleaching, distress, and infection to baby corals. The corals had DNA damage and abnormalities in their growth and skeleton. The sunscreen that rinses down the drain will find its way into the ocean, causing devastating damage to coral reefs and the sea. The chemicals and fragrances will eventually accumulate in the marine organism and end up in the seafood consumers eat.
Amavara has produced sunscreen that is free from oxybenzone, octinoxate, and nano titanium, to keep the oceans free from harmful chemicals and the oceans reef healthy. Amavara uses their EarthWell® Zinc Technology, designed to protect the environment. The brand uses naturally sourced Non-Nano Zinc Oxide as its single active ingredient. According to the brand, it is too large to dissolve in seawater or seep through skin pores and enter marine biosystems to cause damage. Its packaging is made from post-consumer recycled plastic.
Another sunscreen line that preserves and protects the ocean is the Everyday California sunscreen line. Its sunscreens are 100% free of oxybenzone, octinoxate, parabens, phenoxyethanol, and other chemical UV filters. Furthermore, the company donates a portion of its profit for every purchase to ocean conversation initiatives.
Picture: Amavara
Use-it-again
Single-use cotton pads, makeup wipes, and cotton swaps are harming the environment with the chemicals, deforestation, and water that goes into producing them. 1.5 disposable swaps are produced annually, requiring resources to produce, ship, and package to be thrown away after a single use. Once they are used, they do not biodegrade due to the plastic content, contributing to the significant issue of plastic pollution. The average makeup wipe takes up to 100 years to break down. Marine animals have been found with their stomach full of wipes, as they have been mistaken for jellyfish.
The company Sea Bae Beauty is trying to find a solution to the big problem there is with single-use plastic. The company is on a mission to protect the ocean by creating a sustainable and reusable product that can be used in consumers' everyday beauty routines. Their sea bae wipes are an alternative to disposable face wipes, and are made from hemp cotton, and can easily be cleaned in the Seabae laundry bag. The packaging is 100% biodegradable, reusable, and recyclable.
Another company looking to disrupt the single-use industry is Last Object which creates reusable products that do better for the planet. The company wants to make its products sustainable, high-quality, clean, and good for the ocean while being a minimum 10x better than single-use plastic. Their Last Swap Beauty is a reusable and sustainable alternative to cotton swaps and is specially designed for precise makeup touches. Their Reusable Rounds are made of shape-shifting fabrics that feel like normal cotton and contain a case and seven reusable rounds. The reusable rounds replace +1750 single-use rounds. The case is made from Recycled Ocean-Bound Plastic, and each order removes 1lb of ocean-bound plastic.
Picture: Amavare
Picture: Last Object
Dissolvable Care
Consumers are looking for easy on-the-go solutions while still wanting to lower their carbon footprint and their individual plastic use. Brands have started investigating how they can support zero waste with water-soluble sachets that are plastic free. Sachets that disappear down the skin and drain without worrying about the harm it has to the environment could make consumers' lives easier.
The personal care brand Deardot has created 100% water-soluble and plastic-free sachets. The brand has also created a face cleanser sheet packed in individual sachets that turn into face foam and are completely dissolvable once it is in contact with water. Deardot's Dangyuja Body Cleanser Sheets are made to turn into a light foam for the body upon contact with the water.
Another company that has tapped into the water-soluble trend is the company Planera Care, which makes fuss-free period care with no waste. According to the brand, market-leading period care brands contain up to 90% plastic, and 30% of period products are flushed. However, the brand has created the first flushable pad that is biodegradable. The patches are made from tree sap, biopolymer uplow, and plant fibers and therefore seek to stop microplastic pollution. The pads and wrapper are 100% flushable and will start to degrade, in the toilet, before the consumers have finished washing their hands.
Video: Deardot
Picture: Planera