Bausch + Lomb’s Recycling Programs Collect Over 94 Million Units of Eye Care Waste in the US

Bausch + Lomb announced a milestone in its sustainability efforts—the company's exclusive recycling initiatives, ONE by ONE Recycling and Biotrue Eye Care Recycling programs, have successfully collected a total of 94,119,275 units of used contact lenses, eye care, and lens care materials in the United States. This  equates to approximately 569,743 pounds of waste.

“Our unique recycling programs continue to be popular with environmentally conscious eye care professionals, patients, and consumers,” Amy Butler, Vice President of Global Environment, Health, Safety, and Sustainability at Bausch + Lomb, said in a company news release. “The collective success of these programs proves that simple acts can have a significant impact and create lasting habits.”

The company’s recycling initiatives are designed to address a growing environmental issue: due to their small size and the type of plastic used in manufacturing, contact lenses and related materials are not effectively processed in standard recycling facilities. Consequently, they often end up in landfills or, worse, enter waterways. It is estimated that in the United States alone, between six to 10 metric tons of contact lenses are disposed of into wastewater annually, posing a threat to aquatic ecosystems and potentially contaminating the human food supply.

Bausch + Lomb said it's recycling programs are made possible through a collaboration with TerraCycle, a leader in collecting and recycling hard-to-recycle waste. The company also runs a similar initiative in Canada called "Every Contact Counts."

Bausch + Lomb tracks its progress using the “FEWW” environmental metrics—fuel, energy, water, and waste. Every Bausch + Lomb facility sets annual goals to improve performance in these areas.

To learn more about Bausch + Lomb's sustainability initiatives, visit www.bausch.com/impact.