Recycling your clients' hair is a simple yet incredibly impactful gesture that will significantly reduce your ecological footprint while giving a second life to this renewable raw material. Far more than just waste, recycled hair can be repurposed in many ways, offering new sustainable and innovative perspectives.
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As key players in the beauty industry, you have a crucial role to play in the transition towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly industry. Every day, tons of cut hair unfortunately end up in the trash, even though it is a precious natural resource with multiple applications.
In this article, we will explain in detail why it is essential to integrate this virtuous approach into your salon. We will discuss the multiple environmental, as well as economic, benefits of hair recycling. You will also discover the various existing recovery channels, as well as concrete solutions for easily implementing this eco-responsible practice on a daily basis.
The bin: the ritual after each haircut
Every day, thousands of hairdressers trim and cut the hair of nearly one million French people. In total, this represents 4000 tons of hair waste per year. It is also interesting to note that hair accounts for 60% of a hair salon's annual waste.
Indeed, after taking care of their client's head, what is a hairdresser's first reflex? To sweep the floor to keep it clean, of course! This is where the next problem arises: all this lifeless hair inevitably goes into the bin.
Making salons eco-responsible
To combat this waste, French actors have rolled up their sleeves. To name but two: Coiffeurs Justes, an association working since 2015, and also Capillum, a start-up founded in 2019. These institutions are committed to reducing the impact of hairdressing on the environment. An approach that involves raising awareness among professionals about this major issue, in order to make hair salons greener.
Capillum and Coiffeurs Justes both rely on the ecological alternative. According to them (but science also says so!), hair has significant properties. This organic matter is naturally very resistant, absorbent, insulating, and rich in keratin. Cut hair must therefore be valorized to become a resource profitable for the environment. And for these actors, no action is too small: every individual act is important!
Before recycling, collection
Giving cut hair a second life is the spearhead of Coiffeurs Justes and Capillum. To prevent more hair waste from going to landfills, they have set up a collection process. Based on an annual membership or a donation, they provide salons with bags and collection bins. Once filled, professionals can send them back by post or drop them off directly at collection points.
The fabulous destiny of recycled hair
Well, collecting cut hair isn't everything; you still need to know what to do with it! As we mentioned earlier, hair has many qualities, and each quality can be valuable in preserving the environment. Here are some of the best examples of recycled hair uses!
Recycling n°1: Hair booms, to combat oil spills
8 Liters. That's the amount of oil 1 kg of hair can retain. Indeed, hair is an oleophilic and hydrophobic adsorbent. Naturally fixing hydrocarbons to its surface, a single hair can absorb 8 times its weight. Hair is therefore a real ally in cleaning polluted waters, especially those in port areas.
When a Japanese ship ran aground near Mauritius in July 2020, Coiffeurs Justes, with the help of donors, sent 20 tons of cut hair. Gathered in floating fabric booms, this mass of hair helped contain the oil spill and preserve the marine ecosystem!
Recycling n°2: Mulch mats, to save water
Cut hair is also beneficial for the earth! At the beginning of the year, Capillum designed a 100% natural mulch mat, composed of hair fibers (hair and wool). Traditionally, mulch sheets are placed in decorative gardens and vegetable patches to control weed growth.
Capillum's mulch mat is advantageous for several reasons: it can be used for organic farming, and it is biodegradable. Free of plastic, it lasts for one season, then disintegrates and is perfectly assimilated by the soil. In addition, like conventional mulch sheets, this mat helps limit weeding and water consumption: over 5000 m3 of water have been saved thanks to this alternative!
Recycling n°3: Fertilizer, to nourish crops
Source: Capillum
For tomatoes and zucchini to grow in your vegetable garden, they need regular watering, of course, but also fertilizer to boost their growth!
As you know, hair is composed of rich nutrients: keratin, melanin, oxygen, nitrogen... In short, our cut hair is a goldmine for fertilizing garden soil! Added to compost with food scraps and eggshells, this organic matter creates a quality natural fertilizer. And buried under plants, cut hair also has another power: that of repelling pests, such as moles and wild boars!
The usefulness of recycled hair doesn't stop there. There are many other ways to put it to good use for the planet and society. It aids medical research, improves thermal and sound insulation, and is also transformed into pillows for people in need. In conclusion, recycled hair never ceases to amaze us!
