Sustainability is a word we can’t go a day without hearing or thinking about. And for good reason, too: the beauty industry produces more than 120 billion units of packaging each and every year and an estimated 99% of all beauty packaging is thrown away after the first use. And that’s just the tip of the scary statistic iceberg.

As consumers, we all want to do more to reduce our beauty footprint which is why brands that promote and practice strong sustainability principles are quickly gaining mass popularity. That includes Codex Beauty Labs, the biotech, plant-based beauty brand with a distinct focus on product sustainability.

In this week’s episode of The Skinterview, Ksenia sits down with founder Dr. Barbara Paldus to discuss what both companies and consumers can do to be more sustainable with skincare. Need more reason to listen? Here’s three:

You’ll develop a deeper understanding of the term ‘biotech beauty’

‘Biotech’ is an increasingly popular term in the skincare world. A convergence of the two words ‘biology’ and ‘technology’, it’s not hard to decipher its basic definition as something that utilises both the living natural world and cutting edge science – but what does that actually mean in more concrete terms? And what benefits do biotech beauty products offer skin? Dr. Paldus, a leader in this movement, breaks it down.

You’ll be better armed to swerve the greenwashing

Positively, 88% of consumers want brands to help them live sustainably but this rising demand is also leading to a surge of misleading marketing spin and warped claims. The best way to make your routine more sustainable? Buy less, but buy better. That’s exactly the goal behind our Holistic Skin Sessions, helping you to curate an edited routine of products actually suited to your skin, cutting out the risk of product disappointment and waste.

You’ll hear a deep-dive explanation of the brand’s newest range, Antu

Codex’s Antu range is specifically designed to care for the skin barrier. “The skin barrier is a 10 to 20 micron layer so you can think of it as about one third to one sixth of the size of a human hair,” Dr. Paldus explains. “And that is what keeps pollution, bacteria and viruses out of our bodies and what keeps the moisture inside our bodies.” In this episode, you’ll find out the exact science behind its protective powers, while Ksenia gives the Lion/ne verdict on the new formulas.