Don’t lose your Natural Sparkle – Navigating Glitter Legislation with NatureFlex™
With festival season well underway, in this issue, we’re focusing on a small product that delivers eye-catching performance. Glitter.
You might wonder why a manufacturer known for producing cellulosic packaging films is talking about a product more commonly associated with arts and crafts. But did you know that industrially manufactured glitter is typically made from plastic?
These tiny decorative particles have come under increasing scrutiny in recent years due to their small yet highly visible contribution to microplastic pollution. To understand why, let’s begin with a critical question: what exactly is a microplastic?
Putting Glitter under the Microscope
Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic that are defined as solid, synthetic polymers measuring less than 5mm in length (or less than 15mm in length if it in a fibre form)1.
They can be created both intentionally and unintentionally. Many people are familiar with the breakdown of larger plastic items over time, which results in unintentional microplastic fragments polluting ecosystems. However, microplastics are also deliberately manufactured for specific uses.
They are intentionally used across a wide range of applications; from protective seed coatings in agriculture, to gloss-control agents in paints, and texture enhancers in cosmetic formulations. Glitter also falls into this category, with commercial grades typically ranging from 0.05mm to 6.35mm in size 2,11.
You may think that something so small can’t create a significant problem, but a report released by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in 2020 suggests that 42,000 tonnes of intentionally present microplastics are released into the environment annually in the European Economic Area alone3. That equates to a vast number of tiny plastic particles entering our environment each year.
This growing concern has led the EU to introduce legislation restricting the use of intentionally added microplastics, which came into force in October 2023.¹ Loose plastic glitter was included among the first items to be phased out. Its classification as a ready-made microplastic, its largely decorative (rather than functional) purpose, and the availability of more environmentally friendly alternatives have placed the reasons for using industrial plastic glitter under the microscope4.
Small Particles, Big Headlinese
Although the EU has taken decisive action on microplastics and glitter, there is growing awareness of the impact of glitter on the environment around the world 5.
From researchers finding that there is a significantly higher concentration of microplastics on beaches in Brazil during the Rio Carnival 7, to Illinois in the USA where there is a proposed bill to target microplastics including plastic-based glitter 6, attention is intensifying worldwide.
Whether used in cosmetics as body or hair glitter and make-up, or as embellishments in the arts and crafts markets, the nature of the product means that glitter is likely to end up in wastewater as it’s washed off the body or cleaned down from craft tables.
Currently, under EU legislation, conventional plastic-based glitter can still be used in cosmetics due to an agreed transition period under the Microplastics Regulation. However, once this period ends, cosmetic applications will also no longer be permitted to use plastic glitter.
So, are we witnessing the end of glitter altogether?
Glittering Impact
Before answering that, it’s worth considering why glitter has such enduring appeal.
Glitter has been used to create eye-catching, stand out on-shelf and on-person appeal for (literally) ages. Historically, it wasn’t always plastic based. Early sparkling effects were achieved using natural materials such as minerals, crystals, and even crushed beetles 11.
We have clearly gone to great lengths to add shimmer to our lives, but have you ever thought about why humans like shiny, sparkly things? While it may seem purely aesthetic, some researchers suggest that our attraction to shiny objects is linked to an innate instinct associated with the search for water 8, 9. The urge to head towards a twinkle of glitter spotted in the distance may be invoking an early instinct for survival, as we relate this to the reflection of sunlight on a body of water.
Humans might be predisposed to be attracted to sparkle, but it is also something that we’ve used to make a statement. Whether in fashion, art, music, protest or protection, glitter has been used to push boundaries and amplify impact far beyond simple decoration 10,11.
The world could lose a little bit of magic without glitter, but we can’t continue to use plastic-based glitter at the expense of the planet. So how can we preserve our sparkle while reducing environmental impact? How do we sparkle responsibly?
Restoring your Products Natural Shine
Futamura can offer an alternative solution to help to reduce the microplastics generated from plastic glitter products. Glitter can be based on NatureFlex™ films which are produced from cellulose made from renewable wood pulp, harvested from responsibly managed plantations, because EU legislation provides exemptions for materials that are biodegradable, soluble, natural, or inorganic, meaning they are not classified as microplastics under the regulation. NatureFlex™ films meet these criteria, having demonstrated biodegradability in wastewater, as well as in marine and soil environments.
Once used, certified glitter made from these materials will safely biodegrade in its disposal environment, significantly improving a product’s environmental credentials. However, it is important to ensure that the final glitter product itself is certified, as compliance depends on the complete formulation meeting certification standards.
As well as marine and wastewater biodegradability, NatureFlex™ films meets all the relevant standards for industrial composting, including AS4736, EN13432 and ASTM D6400. They are also certified for home composting according to the Australian home composting standard AS5810, to the French standard, NF T51-800, by Din Certco and to OK Compost Home protocol.
The NatureFlex™ range also offers functional versatility: grades can be coloured, metallised, and holographically embossed, while benefiting from inherent anti-static properties. In this way, our cellulose-based films can restore a natural shine to glitter, sparkling when needed and biodegrading when washed away.
Pour en savoir plus sur NatureFlex™ et Futamura, visitez-nous à https://www.futamuragroup.com/ ou contactez-nous via info@futamuragroup.com pour discuter de votre patch de fenêtre avec nous directement.
References
- Regulation – 2023/2055 – EN – EUR-Lex
- Understanding Sizes and Choosing the Right One – Luminosity – Luminosity Glitter®
- Microplastics_Annex XV_Restriction report
- Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 – Restriction of microplastics intentionally added to products – Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs
- Decorative Glitter Is Contributing To Global Microplastic Pollution
- Illinois lawmaker proposes ban on nonbiodegradable body glitter – The Columbia Chronicle
- ‘There has to be glitter’: can the Rio carnival give up its love of beach-polluting microplastics? | Oceans | The Guardian
- Taking a shine to it: How the preference for glossy stems from an innate need for water – ScienceDirect
- Why do humans like sparkly things? | New Scientist
- The Glitter Chronicles: A Brief History of Glitter – Projekt Glitter
- Glitter – Wikipedia