Garnier helps build NY community garden made from non-recyclable beauty waste

NEW YORK— Garnier, a subsidiary of L'Oréal USA, in partnership with TerraCycle and GrowNYC, announced the groundbreaking of the Garnier Green Garden — the first community garden made from non-recyclable post-consumer beauty waste. The announcement is part of a long-term goal for Garnier to find greener, more sustainable solutions for beauty care products.



On Friday, hundreds of L'Oréal USA employees will participate in a restoration project designed to rebuild a local New York community garden, which was damaged by Hurricane Sandy. When the restoration project is complete, the garden will be turned over to Union Settlement community members and GrowNYC who will grow and maintain food, flowers, and herbs in dozens of newly-installed garden beds made out of recycled beauty materials. The garden is estimated to yield 1,500 pounds of vegetables a year.



"We're thrilled to have created a program that has the capacity to impact the quality of life for an entire community," stated David Greenberg, president of Maybelline New York-Garnier-Essie. "Our commitment to sustainability isn't just about keeping packaging waste from personal care and cosmetics products out of landfills, but it's also about reusing that waste and providing a foundation for greener living."



Garnier spokesperson Bridget Moynahan will be present for the groundbreaking ceremony and activities, as well as representatives from Garnier, L'Oréal USA, TerraCycle, an international upcycling/recycling company that takes difficult-to-recycle packaging and turns it into new products, and GrowNYC, a non-profit that provides environmental solutions throughout New York.



The beauty waste to be used in Garnier's Green Garden was collected by Garnier's Personal Care and Beauty Brigade Program, a free fundraising effort that pays for every piece of waste collected and returned to TerraCycle. The collected beauty waste, which would otherwise be destined for landfills, consists of non-recyclable hair care, skin care and cosmetic packaging. These products have since been recycled by TerraCycle to create many of the plastic components being installed in the new garden.

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