Donna Malena Natural, vegan shampoos are kinder to the planet
Did you know you can help the environment by switching to a more ethical shampoo? Hair products can contain toxic chemicals, such as parabens and phthalates, which damage the oceans and are a risk to your health.
Shampoo ingredients can also include animal fats and palm oil, which has a damaging effect on the rainforest habitats of endangered orangutans.
Of course, we all lead busy lives that make it hard to check the ingredients list of everything we buy, so I’ve done the hard work for you.
Here’s my pick of the best ethical shampoos, which use natural and organic ingredients. They’re also vegan and cruelty free and each brand works hard to reduce waste by using recycled and recyclable plastic or avoiding it altogether.
Faith In Nature
Since their launch in 1974, Faith In Nature have built up a wide range of hair, beauty and household products and their natural shampoos are one of my personal favourites.
I love the Grapefruit and Orange, but the whole range smells divine. This invigorating ethical shampoo is good for normal and oily hair, while the Shea and Argan Shampoo nourishes dry and very dry hair and the Blueberry Shampoo hydrates all hair types.
Faith in Nature’s vegan shampoos use natural ingredients, fragrances and essential oils and are free from parabens and sulphates. The bottles are recycled and recyclable and larger refill sizes are available too, including options to top up at local refill stations. If you don’t have an ethical shop near you, Faith In Nature is also available at Boots.
Neal’s Yard
I love Neal’s Yard’s Nourishing Lavender Shampoo. It’s good for fine and curly hair because it contains nourishing jojoba and natural calendula, which tames flyaway strands and curls.
All hair types are catered for in this range of ethical shampoos. The Revitalising Orange Flower Shampoo is good for normal hair, the Nurturing Rose Shampoo is good for dry, damaged and coloured hair and the Invigorating Seaweed Shampoo is suitable for all hair types.
Neal’s Yard have been creating organic beauty products since 1981 and their ethical shampoos have a low lathering foam to prevent your hair’s natural oils being stripped away, which can make your hair dry and your scalp irritated.
All of the shampoos are natural, organic, vegan and cruelty free and the bottles are recycled and recyclable. Neal’s Yard are also carbon neutral and committed to tackling climate change.
Grüum
In recent years, soap bars have become very popular and they’re great for the environment because they’re plastic free and zero waste. There are many different shampoo bars on the market and if you’re keen to switch to soap, don’t give up if the first one you try isn’t to your liking. As with liquid shampoos, sometimes you need to try a few to find one that suits you.
I like Grüum’s hår Shampoo Bar – Shine Boost, which contains henna and juniper and makes dark and dyed hair extra shiny.
The lemon juice in the Brightening Shampoo Bar gives fair and highlighted hair a boost, the Revitalising Bar revives dry and dull hair and the Nourishing Bar makes all hair types super shiny.
All of Grüum’s ethical shampoo bars are plastic free, vegan, natural and cruelty free and the cardboard packaging is fully recyclable.
Nuddy
Nuddy also make cruelty-free, vegan shampoo bars that smell amazing. My favourite is the Daily Shine Treatment Shampoo Bar: Mint Lime and Grapefruit, which provides extra shine to all hair types and has an energising and invigorating fragrance.
The Cocoa and Cardamom Bar will give your hair extra volume and the Ultra Volume Peach Bar leaves hair looking as bouncy and big as it does after a blow dry.
These natural Nuddy soap bars use raw African shea butter and are free from parabens, sulphates and phthalates. The recyclable cardboard packaging is plastic free and each soap lasts up to three times longer than a bottle of shampoo.
Umberto Giannini
Good news for lovers of Umberto Giannini’s Curl Scrunching Gel, the vegan haircare brand now make a Curl Jelly Wash Shampoo. It’s free from sulphates and parabens and adds body and bounce to wavy and curly hair.
Umberto Giannini products are all vegan and cruelty free and they are a Certified B Corp, which means they meet remarkably high standards for their environmental and societal impact. All of their packaging is recyclable and the majority is recycled. Currently, they are working towards making all their packaging recycled or natural sugar cane.
Their ethical shampoo range also includes Hair Repair Protein Shampoo, Pure Blonde Shampoo, Grow Long Root Stimulating Shampoo and Volume Boost Thickening Shampoo. If you’re looking for a shampoo that’s available on the high street, you’ll be pleased to hear you can buy Umberto Giannini shampoos at Boots.
Rhyme and Reason
Another fabulous ethical shampoo brand that’s stocked by Boots is Rhyme and Reason. Their Repair and Restore Shampoo contains argan oil, which leaves dry and damaged hair looking super shiny and soft. It also contains prickly pear and amino acid complex to nourish and strengthen damaged hair.
Rhyme and Reason’s shampoo range includes Nourish and Gloss Shampoo for all hair types, Quench and Curl Shampoo for curly and textured hair and Volume Boost Shampoo for fine, flat hair. They’re all vegan and cruelty free and don’t contain nasty chemicals, such as sulphates and parabens.
The bottles are all completely recycled and recyclable and the rectangle bottle has been designed to maximise space when transporting the shampoo to stores, which helps to reduce their carbon footprint.
Got a question? Get in touch at helloplanetetica@gmail.com
