Colgate launches first-ever recyclable toothpaste tube on road to 2025 sustainability goals
14 Jan 2020 --- Toothpaste juggernaut Colgate has launched the “first-ever” recyclable toothpaste tube line called Smile for Good. Certified by the Vegan Society, the new tube outlines the function of each of the toothpaste’s 99.7 percent natural ingredients on the front of the pack in a RecyClass-recognized recyclable tube. Having recently been named one of the top ten polluting companies worldwide, Colgate aims to make all of its packaging recyclable – toothpaste and otherwise – by 2025.
“Our goal is to transform tubes – one of the most widely used forms of plastic packaging that until now could not be recycled – with a package that squeezes easy like a tube and recycles like a bottle. We’re openly sharing it with competitors to help make tubes a part of the circular economy. We can align on common standards for tubes and still compete with what’s inside them,” Ann Tracy, Vice President of Sustainability at Colgate-Palmolive, tells PackagingInsights.
The ingredients and their purposes printed on the front of the pack state:
Water: Blends ingredients together.
Fluoride: Protects from cavities.
Silica: Cleans and polishes teeth.
Xylitol & Aroma: Makes the paste taste fresh.
Cellulose Gum: Gives the right consistency.
Lauryl Glucoside & Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate: Foams to reach teeth all around.
The launch responds to consumers' rising demands for increased product transparency and naturality.The product line is free from sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). The recyclable tube carries two product variants, Smile for Good Protection and Smile for Good Whitening, which additionally includes baking soda known for its whitening properties.
In addition to the Vegan Society, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and EcoCert certify that the toothpaste formula is responsibly made and most of the components are derived from natural sources. The product duo will be available to purchase from Sainsbury’s, Boots, Superdrug, Wilko, Waitrose, Ocado and Amazon from this month onward and from February at Tesco and Morrisons.
Do diligence on durability
Smile for Good uses high-density polyethylene (HDPE), an existing widely recycled plastic. “HDPE had been thought to be too rigid to create a squeezable toothpaste tube. Colgate engineers figured out how to combine different grades and thicknesses of HDPE laminate into a tube that meets recycling standards while protecting the product and holding up to the demands of high-speed production,” Tracy says. This way, the tubes are guaranteed to remain comfortably squeezable.
Environmental responsibility
Within the framework of its “5% for the Planet” program, Colgate-Palmolive aims to allocate 5 percent of every manufacturing facility’s annual capital budget towards projects that reduce energy, water and waste.
Smile for Good uses HDPE, the plastic used to make milk jugs and other plastic bottles. Between 2002 and 2018, the company’s global manufacturing sites have already reduced energy intensity by 32 percent, absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent, water intensity by 46 percent and landfill waste intensity by 41 percent, with 2010 as the latter’s base year.
Smile for Good presents an additional way in which Colgate is improving the sustainability profile of its products to help achieve its aim of 100 percent recyclable packaging by 2025, the company states. Tracy affirms that the boxes containing the tubes also use non-laminated recyclable cardboard that is FSC-certified. In 2018, Colgate partnered with UK recycling company TerraCycle to enable consumers to recycle their oral care products and packaging.
Following the same pattern of sustainable practices, Colgate also released its first bamboo toothbrush, Colgate Bamboo Charcoal Toothbrush, which is made with 100 percent biodegradable bamboo handle (not including the bristles) and is free from plastic packaging. This provides an alternative to plastic-based toothbrushes destined for landfill waste.
By Anni Schleicher
