Taking proper steps – like seeking shade, wearing protective clothing, and using sunscreen – is necessary to ensure adequate sun safety. After all, sun protection is essential to prevent skin cancer and help with skin issues like rosacea. But that isn’t to say you should choose just any sunscreen. Low-impact and sustainable sunscreens are important for well-rounded sun safety!
Overall, our water treatment facilities can only remove so much, naturally things can slip through the cracks. Even if ingredients are nontoxic for us, they could still be toxic to aquatic systems. That’s why it’s important to use products that are reef-safe, biodegradable, and sustainable!
The truth is that choosing sustainable sunscreens is important for health and environmental reasons. That’s because the products we use can impact us, waterways, and ecosystems. It’s also important for general conservation efforts to support ethical companies and be a conscious consumer. So, read on if you’d like to learn some tips on how to look for sustainable sunscreens and what 5 of my picks that meet these criteria are.
When shopping for sustainable sunscreens look for:
- Reef-safe active ingredients like non-nano zinc and titanium oxide. Stay away from benzophenones, octocrylene, or octinoxate.
- Up-front company ethics backed by third-party certifications.
- Alternative packaging or waste initiatives.
- Non-aerosol sprays, creams, liquids, or balms.
Although I believe we should be conscious of the products we use, I want to mention that we shouldn’t subscribe to fearmongering that has no scientific backing. Chemical sunscreens, particularly, have a bad reputation and in certain spaces are heavily talked down on. Let’s be clear though, chemical sunscreens are typically not worse for you than mineral sunscreens. Both mineral and chemical sunscreen ingredients have the potential to negatively affect us and the environment which makes opting for reputable sustainable sunscreens all the more important.
Resources like Yuka or EWG make it easy to investigate product ingredients and make it easier to learn about what’s in products. Using these resources helps me make informed decisions on choosing products that align with my values and with ingredients I’m comfortable with, so it may be helpful for you too! As always though, do your own research independently if needed, and remember that dose makes the poison. Use your best judgment and the list above to gauge what sustainable sunscreens are best for you.
Brands that offer reef-safe and sustainable sunscreens:
Generally, I prefer non-nano mineral creams because I have dry and fair skin that works well with these types of sustainable sunscreens, and also hate how chemical sunscreens burn my eyes. If you aren’t fair-skinned or just don’t want to worry about white cast but still want to use a mineral-based sunscreen, I would recommend tinted sunscreens. I’ve highlighted the tinted sustainable sunscreens for each brand that offers them below to make them easy to find!
For each brand listed below, I’ve outlined some information about each as well as some product highlights. For a complete list of products and brand information, make sure to check out their website directly!
Stream2Sea is trying to redefine the meaning of reef safety by minimizing as much harm as possible. Their products are USDA certified biobased, meaning they’re biodegradable, but actually have a certification to back it up. They’re also FDA-certified and Protect Land + Sea certified. They use a lot of third-party testing and are very transparent with those results. Stream2Sea is woman and veteran-owned and made in the USA. Their products are either packaged with PCR or use sugarcane resin bio-plastic to help reduce and repurpose petroleum-based plastic.
Their sustainable sunscreens are water-resistant, fragrance-free, non-comedogenic, 100% mineral-based, and vegan. They offer a sunscreen lip balm option that’s amazing and a plastic-free sunscreen option in the form of a tinned balm. Stream2Sea also has bulk sunscreen options and an option to buy “factory seconds” which is a buy one get one free deal aimed to reduce factory waste! Several cream sunscreen options are available too, like this everyday active sunscreen. Plus, you can snag tinted mineral sunscreen from this brand too!
Badger is a certified B Corp whose products are cruelty-free and made with solar power. Many products are Protect Land + Sea certified, like their plastic-free sunscreen option. Their products aren’t vegan because they use beeswax but a high percentage of USDA-certified organic ingredients are used and some are fair-trade. Some products are packaged in PCR materials too. Badger is also woman-owned and family-owned and operated while also being made in the USA. Overall, they’re a great place to find sustainable sunscreen options!
This brand also has a mineral-based sunscreen lip balm option, although it has beeswax so it’s not vegan, it’s great if using coconut oil lip products breaks you out. They have a range of cream sunscreens, like this active clear-zinc sunscreen. Their cream sunscreens are on the thicker side but are still blendable once warmed up. Some of the thicker and higher SPF products can leave a white cast though, so if you don’t like that then I would suggest opting for other options.
Alba Botanica is Leaping Bunny-certified cruelty-free and uses 100% vegetarian ingredients. I’d love to see a greater focus on other sustainability initiatives though. This brand does focus a lot on animal ethics and uses some PCR materials. Plus, many products are biodegradable, including their sunscreens. Regardless, Alba Botanica is a brand I’ve been using for years and it’s a great low-impact yet affordable option that can be found more readily than some other brands which is why I’ve included them in this list!
This brand does an amazing job with lighter-weight formula sunscreens which is great if you’re sensitive to heavier formulas. They do offer both mineral and chemical sunscreen options, unlike the previous brands which are mineral-based only, and are reef-safe up to the current scientific findings. My original favorite from this brand is their Hawaiian sunscreen, it has a light yet pleasant scent and is extremely easy to apply. For mineral-based, I’d recommend this sheer mineral sunscreen which is fragrance-free if you’re sensitive to scents. Overall, this brand has a lot of different options but I’d skip the aerosols in favor of the creams.
Babo Botanicals is a certified B Corp and makes their products in the USA. This brand focuses on plant-based ingredients and is Leaping Bunny certified. They have a How2Recycle partnership which provides information on how to recycle the product packaging to minimize waste. They are MADE SAFE certified and some of the ingredients sources use 100% renewable energy and with some fair trade partners. Babo Botanicals also co-founded the sun safety coalition and promote initiatives in favor of things like urban farming and education.
This brand has an assortment of amazing sustainable sunscreens that are 100% mineral-based and fragrance-free. They also have a plastic-free option which is another tinned sunscreen. More surprisingly, they have non-aerosol spray options like this mineral sunscreen spray! They also offer traditional cream sunscreens like this Super Shield Lotion. But they have lighter weight options too, like this Daily Sheer Fluid. These have more of a watery consistency that is easier to blend than the thicker creams. You can find a couple of tinted sunscreen options from Babo Botanicals too!
Attitude is a Canada-based brand that offers 100% vegan products and are certified by PETA. They are Forest Stewardship Council certified and Ecologo certified, meaning they have third-party testing done to assess the life-cycle of their products and ingredients to ensure reduced environmental impact. Because of this, their products are biodegradable. They also focus on plastic-free packaging options and take part in tree-planting initiatives. Overall, a great option for sustainable sunscreens that I highly recommend.
This brand’s sunscreen creams are on the thicker side but work effectively and blend eventually. They have several options including scented and unscented, but this mineral sunscreen is a go-to. I love the sensitive skin options, like this sunscreen cream. The sensitive skin options have colloidal oatmeal and are certified with the National Eczema Association Seal of Acceptance. They also offer a plastic-free option in the form of sunscreen sticks like this sensitive skin one or this tinted one, instead of a tin it’s in a biodegradable cardboard tube!
Choose reef-safe and sustainable sunscreens for well-rounded sun safety.
Our actions matter, but we should still take sun safety seriously! We need to find options that not only suit us and our lifestyles but also minimize social and environmental harm as much as possible. That’s why, as someone who doesn’t take sun care lightly, I opt for sustainable sunscreens.
At the end of the day though, any sun protection you’ll actually use is the best choice. However, if you want to shop more ethically these are great options to look into. After all, products should be safe for us and the environment! By choosing better options like sustainable sunscreens, you can be part of the solution to keep us and our marine life happy and healthy.