Eco Glitter - bad or good?

Sparkling glitter has long been one of the most popular decorative cosmetic products. We humans are almost magically attracted to it. For evolutionary reasons, we are simply fascinated by anything that resembles the surface of water at first glance.

At the same time, glitter reminds us of the sun's vital rays. We therefore find everything glittery about our counterparts both pleasant and exciting.

The creation of glitter
In 1934, the American farmer and machinist Henry Ruschmann developed a process for cutting shimmering particles from Mylar and plastic sheets. This made it possible to produce glitter in large quantities on an industrial scale. Glitter reached the peak of its popularity in the 1970s during the dazzling and glamorous disco era. Since then, it has been an integral part of colourful occasions such as carnival or Halloween. The extravagant trend spread to a wide range of products.

But environmental awareness is changing
Fortunately, more and more consumers are now developing a more critical approach to cosmetics and, as a result a whole new environmental awareness. The consequence: Due to health concerns and justified worries about massive microplastic pollution, many people are now deciding to do without glitter. From the point of view of organic and natural cosmetics, this is not even necessary, as there are promising ecological alternatives.

All that glitters is not gold - the problem with glitter

What is glitter actually?
Glitter - often referred to colloquially as "glitter" - can be found in nail varnishes, shower gels, scrubs, lipsticks, textiles and numerous other products. And if you don't overdo it, it really does look sensational. But its effect on the environment appears to be much more serious. Conventional glitter consists of microplastic particles, which are held responsible for enormous pollution and contamination of oceans and lakes worldwide. The extent to which they can cause damage to human health is currently not foreseeable.

What is microplastic?
The term microplastics covers all types of plastic particles that are less than five millimetres long. They are found in cosmetics and care products, textiles and cleaning agents, among other things, and can pose a real threat to the marine habitat and other bodies of water.
The microspheres contained in conventional glitter are considered to be particularly problematic. Fish and other sea creatures often mistake them for food, which can lead to the animals' agonising death. For this reason, the USA reacted in 2015 and withdrew wash-off cosmetics containing such fine particles from circulation with the Microbead-Free Waters Act. Similar bans were passed in other countries such as the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and the UK. Even the People's Republic of China and India are planning to join the global fight against microplastics by introducing such legal provisions.

Conventional glitter vs. eco glitter - these are the differences

The solution from the sustainability industry: sustainable eco-glitter
The international trend away from microbeads is more than welcome from the perspective of organic and natural cosmetics. This development has also gradually led to many companies having to consider alternatives to the environmentally harmful commercial plastic glitter. And so the so-called Eco Glitter was invented.
But how does ordinary glitter differ from eco glitter?

Conventional glitter vs. eco glitter
Conventional glitter made from microbeads is a classic "disposable product" that definitely cannot be recycled. This is the only reason why it is possible for excreted or washed-off particles to collect in bodies of water where they can never be degraded.

The situation is different with eco glitter or organic glitter. This is Largely plastic-free and usually biodegradable, at least after some time. Eco Glitter does not usually consist of plastic particles, but of plant-based products such as cellulose, which is usually obtained from eucalyptus. The fine pieces are coated with a thin layer of naturally coloured aluminium.

Of course, there are some qualitative differences between the various manufacturers of organic glitter. But the general rule is: Eco Glitter is a genuine natural and ethical alternative to plastic products.

Natural alternative Eco Glitter?

The dispute over Eco Glitter: How sustainable is Eco Glitter really?
Although the advantages of eco glitter over conventional plastic glitter are obvious, the natural alternative product is by no means uncontroversial. In recent years, the manufacturers of eco glitter have been repeatedly criticised. They are increasingly facing accusations of so-called Greenwashing confronted with. Greenwashing is now a widespread practice in the advertising industry. Misleading claims about the alleged environmental friendliness of a product make a company appear "greener" than it really is. Like all industries, the glitter industry is not immune to dishonest PR methods like this.

For most manufacturers of eco glitter, however, the greenwashing accusation is misplaced. They have actually found innovative, creative and environmentally friendly alternative ways out of the microplastic mess. After intensive research, we found Bioglitter™ for BIOMAZING, a multi-award-winning supplier to whom this definitely applies.

Stay cautious
Nevertheless, Eco Glitter is a completely new product that has only been on the market for a few years. So far, hardly anything is known about the actual environmental compatibility of the biodegradable glitter. There are no empirical values and at best we can only refer to test models. A certain degree of scepticism is therefore understandable. After all, other supposedly ethical product alternatives have already turned out to be marketing gimmicks in the past.

Eco-glitter bashing in the media
In this context, well-known international newspapers and various lifestyle media are dealing with the controversial question of whether eco glitter could possibly have harmful effects on the environment. The theory is often put forward that the resulting environmental damage is comparable to that of conventional glitter. In the recent past, the two quality media outlets BBC and The Guardian, for example, have been making the same point. Their arguments were supported by a single smaller study with some admittedly dubious results.

A study on Eco Glitter
This study by Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) found that biodegradable eco glitter can have a negative impact on certain marine life. True to the motto "Everything that glitters is rubbish!", the natural balance is said to be upset by the iridescent bio-glitter. Eco Glitter is suspected of promoting the growth of the New Zealand mudsnail. This in turn would have further effects on the entire aquatic ecosystem. The researchers believe that the sparkling surface structure of the trendy alternative product is primarily responsible for this.

That's why Eco Glitter - our conclusion

The response to the study
That undoubtedly sounds discouraging. However, this is only one side of the coin. On BIOMAZING's initiative, Bioglitter™ responded to the ARU's study and the sometimes misleading media coverage of this issue. This gave the company the opportunity to clear up some misunderstandings in a comprehensive statement. As a result, The Guardian and BBC had to correct some of their statements based on misinterpretations.

Too much of everything is harmful to the environment
The scientists' slogan "Everything that glitters is rubbish!" should therefore be taken with a pinch of salt. In reality, even inorganic mineral material and natural mica have demonstrably comparable effects on their environment. Ultimately, this rather indicates that certain consequences are to be expected if a microtest environment is heavily overloaded. However, nothing concrete is known about the test environment of the study. Experts assume a massive overdose that could never occur in natural waters.

It should also be noted that the data in the study cited is from 2018. This may indeed seem relatively recent. However, the eco-glitter industry is extremely dynamic and innovative. Bioglitter™ is constantly developing its technology. What was true in 2018 may not necessarily be the case today. Furthermore, it is not possible to determine which product the scientists at the ARU actually tested. The specific formulas used by the respective manufacturers certainly differ from one another.

Eco glitter is biodegradable after all
The central weakness of the study and its media coverage is that it completely ignores the biodegradability of Eco Glitter. This property is the key advantage of the alternative product over conventional glitter. The eco glitter produced by Bioglitter™ biodegrades in natural freshwater environments after some time. This means that it does not persist and, unlike conventional plastic glitter, cannot accumulate in large quantities.
This aspect plays a decisive role in assessing the environmental friendliness of such a product. This is because the phase in which Eco Glitter could have a potentially harmful effect would be limited to a relatively short period of time.

The bottom line: Eco Glitter is more sustainable
As with all products, it cannot be ruled out that there may also be black sheep among the manufacturers of organic glitter. In any case, most of the common arguments against eco glitter are generally untenable. If in doubt, it is still advisable to use certified suppliers such as Bioglitter™. TÜV Austria, for example, awards the "OK biodegradable WATER" certification for products that can be guaranteed to biodegrade in a freshwater environment.

Further sources:
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microbead
https://www.greenmatters.com/p/biodegradable-glitter-study
https://theecologist.org/2019/oct/22/greenwashing-glitter
https://www.gruenderszene.de/business/projekt-glitter-bio-glitzer
https://orange.handelsblatt.com/artikel/56615