As Halloween approaches, it’s the season of spooky tales and eerie surprises. But for hairdressers, the most frightening stories might not come from haunted houses, but from your salon’s waste bin. Prepare yourself, because the facts are truly hair-raising.
Only 2% of Salon Foil is Recycled – The Rest is Sent to Landfill
That’s right – a shocking 98% of the foil used in salons ends up in landfill. The foil you use for colouring and highlights, which could easily be recycled, is often just thrown away. This means tonnes of aluminium foil, which takes centuries to break down, is sitting in landfills, contributing to the ever-growing environmental crisis. Just imagine the mountain of waste piling up with every foil sheet used in your salon. Scary, isn’t it?
Hair is Burnt Instead of Being Recycled
Hair is one of the most versatile materials we have. It can be used in more than 10 different ways through recycling initiatives, from cleaning up oil spills in oceans to creating compost. Yet, most hair from salons is either sent to landfill or burnt. This unnecessary destruction of a perfectly usable resource is like a horror story we keep repeating every day.
At Green Salon Collective, we give hair a second life, transforming it into something useful and impactful. So instead of it going up in flames, your clients' hair could be part of a positive change and be recycled in 10+ different ways.
Every Bit of Hairdressing Waste is Likely Still in Landfill
From the empty colour tubes and plastic packaging to the foil and even your PPE, much of the waste generated in salons is still sitting in landfill. Unfortunately, most of this waste doesn’t decompose easily. That means the waste you threw away years ago is likely still sitting there today, contributing to the environmental nightmare.
What’s worse, it’s not just the waste itself. When rubbish decomposes in landfills, it releases methane, a greenhouse gas that’s even more damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide. So not only is your waste not breaking down, but it’s actively harming the planet in the process.
Your general waste might not be able to go for recycling, due to contamination issues, chemicals and mixed materials - but it doesn't have to end up in landfill! We recommend a General Waste to Energy service for your salon, ensuring that nothing goes to landfill.
Everything that can be recycled easily like paper, card and plastic bottles, we recommend using a mixed recycling service as the easiest and most cost effective route.
For specialist salon waste where you need hair recycling, foil and colour tubes, Green Salon Collective is the way...
The Solution: Green Salon Collective
It doesn’t have to be this way. With Green Salon Collective, you can ensure that all your hairdressing waste is recycled properly. We offer sustainable solutions for hair, foil, colour tubes, compostable towels and much more – and we’re committed to keeping your salon waste out of landfill.
This Halloween, instead of fearing the monsters under the bed, it’s time to face the real horrors: the environmental damage caused by salon waste. But the good news is, you have the power to make a change.
Let’s turn this scary situation into a positive one by committing to greener, more sustainable practices. Together, we can stop the waste from haunting our planet.