The Body Shop has collaborated with colour polymer specialists Broadway Colours to ensure consistency for their new 250ml Ginger Anti-Dandruff Shampoo bottle.
The new packs contain 100 per cent post-consumer recycled (PCR) content, 15 per cent of which comes via Body Shop's Community Trade Recycled Plastic initiative, a fair-trade scheme that sees waste pickers in Bengaluru, India fairly treated for their work.
With a heightened focus on reducing plastic waste, global brand owners, packaging technicians and moulders are continually searching for the most economical and ethically resourced environmental materials.
Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) materials are regarded by many as the most obvious and instant solution to utilise waste packaging that would otherwise end up in a landfill. Once washed and reprocessed, PCR can be used for re-moulding, significantly reducing the need for virgin materials.
However, with all recycled plastics, the shade and translucency of the material can invariably differ from batch to batch, presenting a challenge to plastics colourists in the industry. Such problems occur because PCR content in any packaging can adversely affect the colour of the final product due to the nature of the material, particularly at higher levels.
Lauriane Buffe, Product Development Manager for The Body Shop, said: "Working with Broadway Colours provided excellent insight on how PCR content can colour. Not only were they able to offer comprehensive expertise, but they were also able to show us, first-hand, how it looked, by carrying out the colour matching at their site. Because Broadway could provide feedback on very the same day, precious development time wasn't wasted."
Chris Bird, Sales Manager for Broadway Colours, said; "It was a pleasure working with The Body Shop on this project. We were proud to be able to offer the Colour Suite to facilitate the use of recycled materials for the high street. We are passionate about educating and inspiring our customers. By demonstrating that alternative materials are not as daunting as they may initially seem, we believe we can make a real difference to the industry."