Shampoo and conditioner in bar form!? Cut out another source of plastic in your house with this high quality shampoo from New Zealand.
I am now a convert to this zero waste life hack. I don’t think I will ever buy my shampoo or conditioner in a plastic bottle again.
If you want to read a more thorough review of Ethique and why they are a great company to support, I have a longer review here. Or continue on for shorter review below.
The shampoo comes in a little bar that fits in the palm of your hand. Just get it wet, like by cupping your hands to pool some water, then run it over your hair a few times. Put the bar down and rub your hair to foam it all up.
One of the pleasant surprises was how easily it foams up, you get a very full head of foamy, hair cleaning bubbles. Basically the same experience as as the liquid form. Plus, I have been using the product for months and it has barely shrank in size. I feel like this bar is going to last half the year (I’ll report back).
It comes in a small cardboard box that can be tossed in the compost, or recycled if you have not embraced the astounding efficiency and minimal waste of composting (read about how composting changed my life and you might get on board). I traded some emails with the Ethique folks to inquire about whether they considered using recycled cardboard. They gave a very thoughtful answer. The short version is they found that using it was a toss-up in terms of environmental impact if they sourced the paper from sustainably managed forests, as well as used eco-friendly materials such as soy ink and clay coating. Their answer suggests the company takes their environmental impact very seriously.
In fact, Ethique points out how transformative switching to shampoo and conditioner in bar form can be. Besides ridding your house of another source of plastic, it has many other benefits. Ethique’s products are completely vegan, which is good for our little furry friends. Also, it avoids animal-based agriculture, which is a big source of climate-changing gases.
In addition, the average shampoo or body wash is up to 80% water (shocking, right?). Therefore, using shampoo in bar form saves water. It also means avoiding multiple plastic bottles from ending up in the landfill (Ethique says a bar equals the contents of up to 3 plastic bottles).
Ethique seems to walk the walk, there does not seem to be any greenwashing here. They are a carbon neutral company since they offset their carbon emissions. They are also working towards becoming a zero waste office, recycling or composting all their office waste. They also give generously to charity, with 20% of profits going to various charitable groups.
This product kicks butt on our sustainability checklist:
- Shipped in compost-ready cardboard, this is a great zero waste option for your house.
- Ethique is a environmentally-minded and ethical company that is doing business the right way, including donating 20% of their profits to charity each year.
- You get the equivalent of 3 bottles of shampoo/conditioner in a bar due to the high water content in liquid versions, so the price is reasonable and the product is very high quality.
P.S. – Shampoo and conditioner bars are also super convenient for traveling since you can put them in your carry-on bags and no worrying about spillage on your clothes.