Microbeads be gone!

Microbeads were once a skincare staple, but are now on the way out due to their detrimental effect on our precious marine environment.

That’s right, the New Zealand Government have promised to ban beauty products containing microbeads in July 2018.

Environment Minister Nick Smith spoke about the change at a press conference in Wellington on Monday.

“The problem with microbeads is that they are too small to retrieve or recycle, they do not biodegrade, and that they are mistaken by marine life as food, causing long-term damage to aquatic animals and like fish and mussels,” he said.

“I note that some companies have already announced that their intention is to phase them out.”

NZ isn’t the first to the eco party, with the United States and Canada already banning products including the pesky plastic particles. Australia isn’t far behind either.

So say ‘buh bye’ to microbeads… or else! Companies who don’t remove products containing microbeads, or fail to replace them for biodegradable alternatives, will face a maximum fine of $100,000.

Lucky for beauty lovers, most big players in the cosmetics industry have already begun phasing them out due to overseas pressures. Fingers crossed our staple go-to buys won’t disappear off shelves!

Even though it’s still just under a year and a half away, this is a great step forward and one cosmetics shoppers should be proud of.