Bausch + Lomb Corporation (NYSE/TSX: BLCO), a leading global eye health company dedicated to helping people see better to live better, today announced its exclusive ONE by ONE Recycling and Biotrue Eye Care Recycling programs have collected a total of 94,119,275 units*, or 569,743 pounds, of used contact lenses, eye care and lens care materials in the United States. That’s equivalent to the weight of roughly 690 polar bears¹.

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

Due to their small size and the type of plastic used to manufacture them, contact lenses, eye care and lens care materials aren’t efficiently processed in standard recycling facilities and may inadvertently end up in landfills or waterways. In the United States, it is estimated that six to 10 metric tons of contact lenses end up in wastewater each year, which can pollute aquatic environments and eventually impact the human food supply.

“Our practice has relied on Bausch + Lomb’s ONE by ONE Recycling and Biotrue Eye Care Recycling programs for years,” said Jennifer Tsai, OD, LINE OF SIGHT, New York. “It’s rewarding to be a part of an initiative that aligns with our practice’s focus on sustainability.”

Bausch + Lomb has a similar contact lens recycling program in Canada called Every Contact Counts. All three programs are made possible through a collaboration with TerraCycle^®, a world leader in the collection and recycling of hard-to-recycle waste.

Bausch + Lomb is committed to implementing, maintaining and enhancing sustainable business practices that support eye care professionals, patients, consumers, employees and communities around the world. Its impact initiatives are measured against several key environmental metrics called “FEWW” – fuel, energy, water and waste. Each Bausch + Lomb facility has annualized goals against these metrics to harness new opportunities and evolve in a sustainable way as it continues its mission of helping people see better to live better. Visit www.bausch.com/impact for more information.

About the ONE by ONE Recycling Program

The Bausch + Lomb ONE by ONE Recycling program is the first and only contact lens recycling program in the United States. This program collects used contact lenses, top foils and opened plastic blister packs from any brand and is available to contact lens wearers and eye care professionals. To participate, contact lens wearers can bring their used contact lenses and packaging to official ONE by ONE eye care practice recycling locations, which collect the used materials in a custom recycling bin provided by Bausch + Lomb. Once the bin is filled, the optometry practice ships the materials using a Bausch + Lomb pre-paid shipping label to TerraCycle where it is cleaned and melted into hard plastic pellets that can be used to make new recycled products. To learn more about the Bausch + Lomb ONE by ONE Recycling program, visit www.BauschRecycles.com.

About the Biotrue Eye Care Recycling Program

The Bausch + Lomb Biotrue Eye Care Recycling program is the first and only eye care and lens care recycling program in the United States. This program allows consumers who participate to properly recycle all brands of their eye drop single dose units, lens cases and lens solution caps, as well as all Biotrue-branded eye drops bottles. Once consumers collect these items, they can be mailed to TerraCycle using a pre-paid shipping label. When the waste arrives at the TerraCycle facility, it is cleaned and melted into hard plastic pellets that can be used to make new recycled products. To learn more about the Biotrue Eye Care Recycling program, visit www.biotrue.com/terracycle/.

About Bausch + Lomb

Bausch + Lomb is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the gift of sight for millions of people around the world – from birth through every phase of life. Its comprehensive portfolio of approximately 400 products includes contact lenses, lens care products, eye care products, ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter products and ophthalmic surgical devices and instruments. Founded in 1853, Bausch + Lomb has a significant global research and development, manufacturing and commercial footprint with approximately 13,000 employees and a presence in nearly 100 countries. Bausch + Lomb is headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario, with corporate offices in Bridgewater, New Jersey. For more information, visit www.bausch.com and connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

*Estimated based on weight.

References

1. https://a-z-animals.com/blog/the-largest-polar-bear-weighted-as-much-a-fishing-boat-3-reasons-it-grew-so-large/ 

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