Concerns over climate change and pollution are pushing cosmetics producers to become more eco-friendly, and indie brands are well positioned to pivot towards biodegradable ingredients and packaging, says the co-founder of Indie Beauty Expo.
Sustainable beauty packaging options are in high demand and short supply. But Ezonyx, a biotech and IP licensing company, hopes to add to that supply with its new degradable bioplastic.
Researchers at Harvard's Wyss Institute have developed a method to carry out large-scale manufacturing of objects using a fully degradable bioplastic isolated from shrimp shells.
Rising oil costs and growing economies of scale in production will see plant-based plastics becoming more cost effective in future, according to market researcher Mintel, and this is expected to lead to greater uptake of these materials as a result.