In February 2020, Ethical Consumer sent Conscious Skincare a questionnaire requesting information about its environmental reporting. The company responded saying that its last Ethical Consumer questionnaire (received in February 2019) was still correct and that the only changes relating to the environment since were:
‘We trialed biodegradable pouches but they were unsuccessful. We now offer refills in 500ml bottles made from recycled plastic which are also fully recyclable too. We have moved all our 250ml products which were previously packaged in PET plastic into glass bottles; body wash, face wash, body lotion, hand wash, hand lotion, soak, shampoo, conditioner. Shave gels and exfoliants previously packaged in PET plastic are now packaged in fully recyclable aluminum bottles.’ The whole range was therefore available in glass and aluminum.
According to its website: “Over 98% of the ingredients we use to create our organic skincare are certified organic by one of the following organisations; Soil Association, Ecocert, USDA. Sometimes an organic version of an ingredient is not available or does not exist. Water and minerals such as salts, vitamins or extracts are good examples of this.”
Its February 2019 questionnaire stated that it had the Leaping Bunny logo from Cruelty-Free International, and was Vegetarian and Vegan approved by the Vegetarian Society. All of its products were suitable for Vegans, with the exception of its Grapefruit Lemon and Cedarwood Shampoo which contain honeyquat.
All products were said to be free of the toxic chemicals, parabens, phthalates and triclosan. All of its products are certified by the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG’s) Skin Deep scheme, and several were also EWG Verified.
According to the questionnaire, the company only used recyclable packaging for its orders; re-cycled its own raw material packaging by giving to a local business or a recycling firm that processes it into pellets for items like bottles and clothing; offers refills on some products’.
No environmental report was found. However, as a small company with a turnover of under £10.2 million that was considered to be providing an environmental alternative, it received Ethical Consumer's best rating for Environmental Reporting overall.
Reference:
Conscious Skincare email (13 March 2020)