MAC Cosmetics is fine-tuning its approach to recycling.

The makeup (and as of last yr, skincare) brand is evolving its its Back to MAC sustainability program, which was first introduced in 1990 and enables consumers to return product empties en masse via mail or to participating MAC counters in exchange for a free product of their selecting, with the aim of reducing landfill waste.

In 2022, greater than 340,000 kilos of empty MAC containers — the equivalent of roughly 9.3 million lipsticks — were processed within the U.S. through Back to MAC, and now, the brand has teamed up with Close the Loop and Plastics for Change to execute an excellent greater program impact in 2023 and beyond.

“When [Back to MAC] was born, recycling was not top of mind because it is today; there weren’t the partners that exist today,” said Aïda Moudachirou-Rébois, senior vp, global chief marketing officer at MAC. “We wish to enhance each how much we recycle, and the way we recycle.”

Through its partnership with Close the Loop, the end-to-end solutions provider will process returned empties using an exacting process which ensures as much material as possible — including some which otherwise wouldn’t be recognized as recyclable by municipal streams — might be recycled into latest products.

MAC estimates greater than 660,000 kilos of product might be collected every year through this system, and that between 220,000 and 440,000 kilos might be recycled within the U.S. this yr with Close the Loop.

The brand has also pledged an initial donation of $100,000 to provider of ethically sourced, recycled plastic, Plastics for Change.

“We all know that customer adoption alone is just not enough, which is why we desired to partner with Plastics for Change to support the gathering of plastic, but in addition the collectors who collect plastic of their communities,” said Moudachirou-Rébois, adding that the initial donation will enable the gathering of greater than 550,000 kilos of plastic.

Along with bolstering its recycling program, the brand is investing in other efforts to reduce its impact on the planet, aiming for 60 percent of its packaging to be either recyclable (or recycled), refillable, or reusable by 2025, and 50 percent of its plastic to be PCR by the identical yr.

“Our goal is to make more responsible decisions through your entire product life cycle without compromising the product offering and experience for the buyer,” Moudachirou-Rébois said.