What Is Biodegradable Glitter Made of?

In this Eco-friendly Era, you may have to choose between biodegradable glitter or regular plastic glitter. What a dilemma! Although, most of you were probably not aware of this distinction. After all, glitter is glitter, and it exists for the sole purpose of making everything shiny and beautiful, right? But the truth is that with Bioglitter™ you can shine without harming the planet.

Have you ever really stopped to think about what glitter is made of? Or even more important, if it is polluting our planet? Probably not. No one cares to know where glitter comes from and where it ends up.

We can find glitter in our daily lives, from clothes, art decorations, makeup, toys, cards, and wrapping paper, to name a few. Glitter is a synonym for joy, sparkle, and beauty. However, it also translates into a million tiny pieces of plastics that pollute our oceans and landfills.

So, you should give up glitter and demonize it? Of course not! You just have to think green and choose biodegradable glitter to help the planet instead.

The Problem with Regular Plastic Glitter

Regular glitter is essentially made of tiny bits of waste from the get-go, mainly PLA and PET, which are both plastics. It also has components considered toxic for humans and the environment, like aluminum, titanium dioxide, and iron oxide.

All of these characteristics turn glitter into an ecological hazard. And, although plastic can be recycled, due to its small size, glitter falls into the category of microplastic.  

Microplastic particles that compose glitter end up in our landfills or are washed down the sink. Then, glitter finds its way into rivers and oceans, becoming part of the growing microplastics pollution. 

The ugly truth is that plastic is a disposable, single-use product. Also, it can take up to a hundred years to degrade. And its size makes it impossible to separate from the rest of the garbage!

We would need industrial machinery to decompose or recycle it, requiring lots of wasted water and energy. Additionally, microplastics create highly toxic smoke when burned.

Indeed, microplastics are one of the biggest threats to marine life — and as a result, there has been a public outcry for a ban on glitter, especially after skincare products with plastic microbeads were done away back in 2015.

What Is Eco-Friendly Glitter?

Eco-friendly glitter refers to glitter products that don't pollute the environment and don't jeopardize precious natural resources like water and energy. 

Also, its degradation process occurs under natural conditions, without the need for additional processes that may contaminate water, land, or air. 

For a product to be considered eco-friendly, it must be environmentally safe throughout the whole product's life cycle, from manufacturing to disposal. This includes:

• Composition

• Manufacturing Stage

• Packaging & Shipping

• Use & Disposal

To make things worse, the real problem with glitter is that it is so small that it can end up in the gastrointestinal system of sea creatures, making them starve to death and affecting marine ecosystems.

For most people, it may be irrelevant, but the company's manufacturing practices are crucial. If tons of water are used, or the waste is sent to the ocean in the process of creating eco-friendly glitter, this automatically cancels its benefits!

Also, packaging impacts the environment. Is it recyclable? The next logical thing would be that the packaging has the possibility of more than one use.

However, in the case of eco-friendly glitter, the no negotiable requirement is to be 100% free of plastic or pretty close to it. Otherwise, it won't do anything to diminish the microplastics pollution. The idea is to replace standard plastic glitter with biodegradable glitter!

Bioglitter™ Is the Best Biodegradable Glitter!

Bioglitter™ is an eco-friendly alternative made of specially modified cellulose from hardwoods of eucalyptus, not plastic. Actually, our Bioglitter™ PURE is the first 100% plastic-free glitter in the world.

Also, Bioglitter™ is not toxic; it doesn't contain any heavy metals, is not GMO or CMR, and is cruelty-free and allergen-free. 

And the most important thing is that Bioglitter™ is scientifically proven to be naturally biodegradable. It can achieve 87% of biodegradation in 4 weeks!  

Bioglitter™ holds the "OK Biodegradable WATER" certification by TÜV, commonly known as the freshwater biodegradation test. Also, it is considered Verified Microplastic Free by ECHA.

As soon as it enters the natural environment, Bioglitter™ will start to degrade with the help of bacteria, water, oxygen, and high temperatures, turning into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass. It degrades just like a leaf would after touching the ground.

So, for glitter to be considered naturally biodegradable, it should meet specific criteria:

• The glitter must meet the freshwater test (just like our Bioglitter™ does).

• The glitter company must show the results of the test to prove its biodegradability in nature. Eco-credentials are of the utmost importance.

• It must be naturally biodegradable, meaning under natural conditions. Hence, compostable glitter is not truly biodegradable because it needs special facilities to replicate precise conditions of temperature, airflow, and bacteria for the glitter to degrade. This doesn't happen in real nature! 

We cannot stress enough the importance of eco-credentials to prove that glitter is truly eco-friendly and biodegradable. Many glitter companies claim to be biodegradable or "compostable," when in fact, they may be lying about their product performance. 

Is Today Glitter Biodegradable?

Bioglitter™, a 100% plastic-free glitter that's biodegradable, is now available at online retailer Today Glitter. We are the only verified retail partner of Bioglitter™ in the United States!

Our biodegradable glitter has many different uses, just like regular plastic glitter, but with added benefits. It has a silky, soft-touch on the skin, with FDA-approved colors to use on the lips and around the eyes. In that way, you get all the shimmer without the litter and harm!

Indeed, Bioglitter™ Pure will give you a lovely shimmer while keeping your eyes safe. Our biodegradable glitter is cosmetic grade and complies with global cosmetics and rinse-off legislations.

Additionally, Bioglitter™ has won awards, such as:

• "Green and Sustainability" category in PCHI Fountain Awards China (2019)

• Gold for innovation at in-cosmetics global (2017 and 2018) 

So, whether you're looking to amp up your daily makeup look or make your next craft project shine, Today Glitter is the place to go to find an eco-friendly spark in a wide variety of sizes and colors.