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PentaVision

Eyecare Business

Article

TrendSpotting

The Biggest Trends in Sight

By: Veronica Daub
Eyecare Business April 1, 2022 Vol 36, Issue April 2022 Page(s): 15, 16

THE GREEN LIGHT

Eyewear makers are continuing to follow an eco-focused trajectory.

And, with good reason—it’s not only good for the planet, but it’s also simply good for business. In fact, 77% of Americans are concerned about the environmental impact of the products they buy, according to a recent study conducted by GreenPrint.

In honor of Earth Month this month—and Earth Day on April 22—here in this special two-page section, we highlight some of the vision care industry’s most inspiring, sustainable practices. On this page, we kick things off with two innovative initiatives in the contact lens space.

For contact lens wearers, plastic waste plagues their daily and necessary care routines. Bausch + Lomb and TerraCycle have teamed up to create a free recycling program that processes this plastic waste. Since its inception last fall, 202,751 pounds of plastics and lens items have been properly recycled through the Biotrue Eye Care Recycling Program and the One by One Biotrue Contacts Program.

Just one year after CooperVision partnered with Plastic Bank to establish the first plastic-neutral contact lens, the equivalent of nearly 28 million plastic bottles have been diverted from the oceans—and 171 coastal communities have benefited from exchanging ocean-bound plastic for a variety of necessities. This year, the program is expected to stop 90 million plastic bottles from reaching the oceans.

For additional ways the industry is combating the global plastic crisis and beyond in the ecosphere, turn the page for a roundup of nine sustainable optical initiatives. —VERONICA DAUB

SELL SUSTAINABLY

Here, we continue to serve up some of the industry’s sustainable specs and partnerships. What eco-friendly offerings do you provide at your practice? Share with us on social with the #EBTrendspotting hashtag.

1. Costa has released the next generation of its Untangled sunwear collection, available from EssilorLuxottica. The new frames have a 100% traceable supply chain and are made from a NetPlus material that is 97% recycled fishing nets and 3% performance additive.

2. Mykita has switched its entire acetate supply to the sustainable material Acetate Renew from Eastman, a materials company. The latest full-body acetate collection is Mykita’s first collection to be crafted from Eastman Acetate Renew, which is 60% bio-based and 40% recycled content.

3. Each frame of Dragon’s Upcycled collection from Marchon Eyewear is produced from five recycled and repurposed plastic water bottles. The collection features six unisex styles, three sun, and three optical.

4. Modo has developed an eco-friendly surface finish using physical vapor deposition (PVD) technology, a coating process that does not generate chemical waste or water pollution. Additionally, its Eco collection promise of “one frame, one tree” has planted nearly 3 million trees.

5. Vinylize produces its frames from upcycled vinyl records. The grooves from the records remain an integral part of the design. To protect them from the effects of heat, the vinyl is fused to biodegradable cellulose acetate.

6. Warby Parker has launched a new demo lens molecular recycling program that breaks down discarded demo lenses to create feedstock for Eastman Acetate Renew. This acetate is 60% bio-based and 40% recycled content and is supplied exclusively by Eastman.

7. Polaroid’s spring/summer collection from Safilo is made from eco-polyamide, a bio-based plastic that is composed of over 40% renewable resources; eco-acetate obtained from cellulose, specifically cotton; and recycled metal.

8. Coburn Technologies has introduced the Integrity alloy recovery system, which uses induction heating technology and effectively avoids the use and contamination of water. According to the company, Integrity processes up to 240 blocks of alloy an hour, making it the fastest alloy recovery system currently on the market.

9. Altair Eyewear and Keep America Beautiful have announced a partnership to support the Great American Clean Up (GACP). Altair’s donation to GACP will provide litter cleanup kits and educational materials distributed before GACP events, of which there are typically 15,000 each year involving almost 500,000 volunteers.

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