WHAT IS BIOGLITTER®
WHAT IS BIOGLITTER®?
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Bioglitter® is an eco-friendly alternative to traditional plastic based glitter and has been developed to tackle the problem of glitter related microplastic pollution. |
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Completely unique, Bioglitter® uses plant derived material as its basis rather than polyester and is the only glitter available on the market which will naturally degrade into a harmless substance in the environment. |
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Bioglitter® replaces the polyester film used in traditional glitter with cellulose from hardwoods, primarily eucalyptus sourced from responsibly managed plantations operating to FSC® www.fsc-uk.org/en-uk or PEFC™ www.pefc.org standards. |
WHY IS IT NEEDED
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The world is facing a major issue with plastic pollution and glitter has played its own part. Defined as a microplastic, traditional polyester glitter takes hundreds of years to degrade. |
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Because of its physical size and diverse number of applications; cosmetics, clothing, cards, crafts, to name a few, the normal recycling bins and compost bins are typically not where glitter ‘ends up’. |
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Glitter can find its way into wastewater after bathing or washing clothing, which can then end up in our rivers, oceans or in landfill. Once in the natural environment, glitter like other microplastics, can cause physical harm to small organisms and end up entering the food chain. |
WE THOUGHT GLITTER NEEDED A TOTAL RETHINK
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Making a glitter that could decompose in industrial composting processes was not enough. We though we had to go one step further and develop a glitter that would biodegrade in the natural environment. |
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Bioglitter™ is the first of its kind, a glitter with a core film based on a naturally biodegradable, regenerated cellulose, unique in glitter production. |
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it’s also important to be mindful that the size of the glitter microplastics is relatively small when put in context with other forms of microplastic marine pollution such as vehicle tyre dust, wash fibres from manmade fabrics and the weathering of exterior coatings to name a few. |
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Needless to say, no matter how big or small the potential issue, it still needs addressing. Hence our passion to offer credible alternatives. |
HOW DOES IT WORK?
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In a microbe free environment Bioglitter® is completely durable |
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Once it enters the natural environment such as landfill, a farmer’s field or wastewater, microbes will consume the cellulose core turning it into carbon dioxide, water and biomass. |
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Bioglitter® does not dissolve in water, it needs bacteria and other microorganisms to biodegrade. |
The speed of this decomposition depends on local environmental factors, such as heat, moisture and concentration of microbes. Like a leaf, Bioglitter® will degrade faster in warm and wet conditions.
WHERE IS BIOGLITTER® USED?
Cosmetic Bioglitter is being used by brands in the cosmetics industry, just look for our Bioglitter® logo
The Bioglitter® product family is soon to expand outside of Cosmetic Bioglitter; Deco Bioglitter® designed for decorative and coatings industries
The Bioglitter® product family is soon to expand outside of Cosmetic Bioglitter; Craft Bioglitter® for art and education use will be joining us soon.
THE BIOGLITTER JOURNEY
The creation of Bioglitter® began in 2010, initiated by conversations with a select number of very forward thinking cosmetic manufacturers, when we became increasingly aware of the potential issues with small plastic particles in the environment.
The Bioglitter® ranges are the culmination of several years of development, offering products which are naturally degradable and, as with Bioglitter® Pure, plastic free. However the journey isn’t over, and our ultimate goal is to remove plastics from all our glitter ranges.
WHERE WE ARE ON A DRIVE TO BE PLASTIC FREE
We now have two products in the Cosmetic Bioglitter® range; our first product, Cosmetic Bioglitter® Sparkle is >90% plastic free and our new Cosmetic Bioglitter® Pure, is 100% plastic free. Both ranges are naturally biodegradable and offer their own special effect appearance and specific properties. The hard work is far from over, we are committed to take the original series to 100% plastic free and to create, new, never seen glitter effects for the cosmetic industry.