Why hair recycling matters?Many of us perceive hair as bio waste, just like any other organic ingredient.

While small amounts can indeed be composted, the reality is that hair biodegrades very slowly. So when hair salons generate kilos of waste daily, it's usually dumped into mixed waste and incineratedor or even in some countries dumped to landfill.Both ways toxins are released in to the air. Only in Europe estimated calculation that hair salons generate hair waste is  72 million kilograms of hair waste each year. This process significantly contributes to each haircut having a carbon footprint. 

Have you thought about that when having your hair cut at the salon?

What material is hair made of, and what benefits does its structure provide?

Hair is comprised of many contributing factors. Proteins, raw elements, amino acids and bonds work together in forming hair fiber. The dominant contributor in the composition of hair is protein, accounting for 91 percent of hair fiber. Amino acids the building blocks of protein, are made up of COHNS elements, (Carbon, Oxygen, Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Sulfur).

The hair structure consists of three parts:

- Medulla: the central shaft containing a soft, greasy substance.

- Cortex: the main component providing elasticity, flexibility, and resistance, made up of long chains of keratin linked by intercellular cement rich in lipids and proteins.

- Cuticle: a thin outer layer with scale-like cells overlapping for protection.

Hair, composed mainly of keratin, is a strong fiber. It has an outer cuticle layer and an inner cortex made of small fibers linked by chemical bonds. This design enables hair, a protein-based material, to resist deformation.such as bending, stretching, or pressure.

Hair cuticles are normally closed, but things like chemicals in hair dye, hot water, too much moisture, wind and cold weather can sometimes cause the hair cuticles to open up, making hair more vulnerable to damage like breakage and frizz. Depending also lot on the hair type how open the cuticle layers are.

Human hair is the most resilient fiber compared to others. While animal hairs may be thicker and cover a larger area, they tend to be coarser and shorter than individual human hair fibers.

In contrast to other natural fibers like hemp or cotton, which require dedicated land for cultivation neither animal nor human fibers require such exclusive agricultural space. This distinction is crucial in understanding the inherent sustainability of using hair as a resource. By utilizing the naturally renewable and abundant nature of hair, we can avoid the need for extensive farmland, thus reducing pressure on agricultural resources and ecosystems.

Human hair and dog fur are widely available worldwide and often treated as waste. However, many scientists have begun to explore the material potential of these resources. My mission is to change this perception. As we confront the challenges of a growing population and diminishing natural resources, we must shift our focus towards reducing consumption and embracing materials that can be recycled or repurposed in a circular economy model to create a closed-loop system. Hair fiber, for example, is a prime example of an ecologically sourced material as it grows without requiring additional land space. It can be repurposed for various applications, including environmental cleanup, gardening and agriculture, insulation, filling components, the textile industry, and rope making. In future posts, I will delve deeper into these innovative use cases. For now, I want to emphasize that hair is not waste. It is worth recycling.

Because it not only reduces waste but also serves as a substitute material for synthetic petrochemicals, such as plastic, utilizing hair fiber contributes significantly to mitigating the environmental impact of traditional manufacturing processes.

Every day, more humanity in the world. Building a more compassionate world, one act at a time.