Cosmetics retailer LUSH bans the use of
plastic water bottles
- National campaign to
reduce unnecessary plastic consumption -
Each year 8 billion bottles and cans are
thrown into landfill or littered in Australia.* This alarming statistic is one
that high street retailer, LUSH Cosmetics hopes to challenge next week as it
launches a national campaign encouraging Australians to recycle and refill
their water bottles instead of purchasing more unnecessary plastic. From the 17th until the 23rd
of February 2014 LUSH is partnering with environmental conservationist group,
TAKE 3 to raise awareness about the impact plastic has on the environment, our
health and wildlife.
Australians spend over half a billion
dollars on bottled water every year. Not only is bottled water on average 2000
times the price of regular tap water,* it is also a large contributor to
environmental damage globally. By choosing tap water over bottled water, people
are choosing to care for oceans and wildlife, as well as their own personal
health and the right to water without paying excessive amounts for it.
From the 17th February 2014, single-use plastic bottles will not be used by any staff
member in LUSH’s 26 Australian retail stores, as well as the LUSH kitchen and
head office.
LUSH will also be turning its
stores into official refill stations, encouraging people to refill their water
bottles for free as opposed to purchasing more unnecessary plastic.
Customers will be able to purchase
a limited edition campaign drink bottle (RRP $15.95) with all profits donated
to TAKE 3.
Throughout the campaign, LUSH’s eight
flagship store windows will display 266 plastic water bottles in fishing nets,
representing the amount of bottles and cans littered or thrown into landfill
each second in Australia. LUSH staff will be educating customers
in-store and encouraging them to take three simple steps of action to help
reduce unnecessary plastic consumption.
1.
Refill – Purchase a reusable drink bottle and refill
it in any LUSH store.
2.
Take 3 – Anywhere people go, they can take 3 pieces of
litter away and dispose of it thoughtfully.
3.
Sign – Sign a petition asking for a 10 cent refund on
beverage containers to reduce litter and double recycling rates across
Australia.
Tim Silverwood, co-founder of TAKE 3
says,
"Over 6 million tonnes of
trash enters the world's oceans every year to become marine debris. Marine
debris is responsible for the death of over a million innocent sea creatures
every year. Estimates suggest that up to one third of total global plastic
pollution comes from the beverage industry alone! We all have a part to play in
reducing the amount of plastic entering our oceans and landfills. Refilling
your reusable water bottle is a simple action that will help save the planet,
our oceans and save you money!”
Emma Hart, Ethical Campaigns Co-ordinator says,
“At LUSH we believe in not using
excess packaging. Single-use plastic makes up a huge percentage of waste that
makes its way into our oceans, so we have decided to be part of the solution.
While we are running this campaign with Take 3 in our shop windows for one
week, we are committed to making a longer lasting difference. We have banned
the use of plastic beverage containers throughout our business and have turned
our stores into permanent refill stations to encourage our customers to refill
their reusable drink bottles.”
* Statistic from: http://kickingthecan.org.au/
* Statistic from: http://storyofstuff.org/movies/story-of-bottled-water/
About LUSH
Since its establishment 19 years ago,
Lush Cosmetics has been driven by innovation and its ethics. Creators of
pioneering beauty products such as the bath bomb, shower jellies and solid
shampoo bars, Lush places emphasis on fresh ingredients like organic fruits and
vegetables. Lush operates a strict policy against animal testing and supports
fair trade and community trade initiatives. Lush leads the cosmetics industry
in combating over-packaging by running public awareness campaigns and
developing products that can be sold ‘naked’ to the consumer without any
packaging. There are 910 Lush shops in 50 countries worldwide. In Australia, we
employ over 300 people from sales staff in store and online who serve our
customers to the teams hand-making our products in the Sydney-based factory.
There are 26 Lush stores across the country, including our website LUSH.COM.AU.
In 2013, Lush received the Australian Business Award for Environmental
Sustainability, recognising leadership and commitment to the enhancement,
preservation and protection of the environment through policies and
initiatives.
About TAKE 3
‘Take 3' is a not-for-profit
organisation formed in 2009 that aims to raise awareness of marine debris by
encouraging each visitor to the beach, waterway or...anywhere to simply take 3
pieces of rubbish with them when they leave. We also encourage everyone to
reduce their unnecessary plastic consumption - and make our lives a little less
plastic.
'Take 3' aims to expand their message
throughout Australia and the world and the group has already received
widespread acclaim for their simple yet powerful message. In March 2011 'Take 3' was awarded the Innaugural 'Taronga Conservation
Society Green Grant' and a $50, 000 purse to help develop the organisation with
the help of the team at Taronga Zoo. They
aim to build on existing partnerships that will see the message target the
wider community of beach users including surfers, fishermen, recreational
boaters, surf life savers and everyone living on the coastal fringe.
