Who knew a 3-year-old’s T-shirt would lead to a revolution in the beauty industry—the world’s first zero waste mascara? Inspired by his daughter Izzy’s “No More Waste” T-shirt, Izzy Inventor and Founder Chris Tarling launched Izzy Beauty on April 22, 2021. Since then, we’ve sold 10,000 zero waste makeup products, reducing our industry’s carbon footprint by 14 metric tons CO2e!

Refillable makeup is a huge difference maker for the environment: Here’s why

Compared to conventional makeup, the products made by zero waste makeup brands like Izzy generate significantly less greenhouse gas emissions, especially when manufacturers also adopt zero waste shipping practices.

In fact, according to the 2022-23 Zero Waste Beauty Report, the Ellen Macarthur Foundation says, “If refill designs were to be applied to all bottles in beauty and personal care, packaging and transport savings alone would represent an 80-85% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.” Wow.

If you’re a fan of Izzy, you know we’re passionate about zero waste. From our refillable stainless steel mascara tubes to our upcycled, reusable mailers, we have conservatively reduced carbon emissions by more than 50%. Just look at the numbers:

Emissions from Conventional Makeup + Shipping

• Conventional makeup product footprint (including packaging): 1.5–3 kg CO₂e per item (Actual number depends on the materials, energy used, and waste generated.)
• Shipping materials footprint (conventional): Adds ~0.2–0.5 kg CO₂e per item (Includes plastic bubble wrap, synthetic fillers, and non-recycled boxes.)
• Total footprint per conventional unit = ~1.7 to 3.5 kg CO₂e

Emissions from Zero Waste Makeup + Shipping

• Zero waste makeup product footprint: 0.5–1.5 kg CO₂e per item (Emissions lower due to reduced packaging, eco-friendly ingredients, and the local or small-batch production many zero waste makeup brands use.)
• Zero waste shipping footprint: Adds ~0.05–0.2 kg CO₂e per item (Due to the use of compostable and recycled materials.)
• Total footprint per zero waste unit = ~0.55 to 1.7 kg CO₂e

Carbon Footprint Reduction Per Unit

Based on conservative averages derived from above:

• Conventional makeup average: 2.5 kg CO₂e
• Zero waste makeup average: 1.1 kg CO₂e
• SAVINGS PER UNIT = ~1.4 kg CO₂e

Izzy’s Carbon Footprint Reduction for 10,000 Zero Waste Makeup Items

1.4 kg CO₂e x 10,000 units = 14,000 kg CO₂e (or 14 metric tons)

Source: Zero Waste Week, academic lifestyle studies

What does 14 metric tons CO₂e amount to in the real world?

Sure, 14 metric tons sounds like a lot but what it equates to in the ways we live our daily lives and how it relates to our environment might just blow your mind. Fourteen metric tons of CO2e is equivalent to:

Driving a gas-powered car ~35,000 miles. Imagine yourself driving a typical car coast to coast across the U.S. about 12 times.

Flying from New York to London 28 times. Each one-way trip on a commercial airline emits about 0.5 metric tons of CO₂e per passenger.

Providing electricity for 2.5 homes per year. Think about what it takes to power all of your electronic devices, TVs, appliances, heating, A/C and keeping the lights on.

Preventing 15,400 pounds waste from going to the landfill. That’s nearly 8 tons of landfill waste, based on the average carbon emissions per ton of waste disposed.

Sequestering of emissions by ~230 mature trees. Our forests are being pushed to the limit and buying zero waste products can give them a little breathing room.

Zero waste makeup brands can change the world with sustainable beauty products

At Izzy, reducing carbon emissions is all very personal to us. After all, it was our founder’s profound concern for his children’s future and a commitment to preserving the world they will live in for decades to come that inspired them to launch this business in the first place.

We dreamed big and made things happen but that doesn’t mean we’re going to stop there. We will continue innovating and developing more zero waste products for you to love.

Let’s embrace sustainable beauty together!

Thanks to our loyal customers purchasing 10,000 zero waste products, we’ve made a profound impact on the environment with refillable makeup. Over the past four years, those purchases helped us reduce our carbon footprint by approximately 14 metric tons of CO₂e compared to conventional alternatives. And we’re just getting started!

Whether you’re a fan of the infinitely reusable stainless steel vessels that hold our Zero Waste Mascara or love the magical, water soluble pods encasing our dreamy Dew Bomb Glowy Hydra-Milk moisturizer, thank you for making sustainable beauty a priority.

New to Izzy or need to stock up? Shop our award-winning beauty products today.