Refilling a bottle instead of throwing it away has become a popular way for people to reduce waste — a small, tangible action in response to larger environmental problems.
But whether refilling actually makes a difference depends on how these systems are used and what they replace. Scores of refill stores have opened in recent years as retailers and customers seek fresh ways to reduce waste. Some brands are also using specialized recycling programs for tricky packaging.
At Lufka Refillable Zero Waste store in Tampa, customers bring in reusable containers to fill with soap, shampoo and cleaning supplies instead of buying products in single-use packaging. The idea is to cut down on packaging waste by reusing what people already own.
Customers' containers are weighed first, then filled. They're charged by the amount of product added. Over time, that reuse can add up.
For customer Julie Hughes, the act of refilling feels rewarding. Hughes discovered Lufka two years ago while looking for skincare products and has returned regularly, drawn by the ability to reuse packaging rather than discard it.
“When you do something positive, you get a little bit of like a dopamine hit and you feel good,” Hughes said on a recent trip to buy liquid hand soap. “There are so many big problems in the world, but we can’t solve all of the big problems, but we do have control over our choices.”
Some shoppers have been refilling the same containers for six years, said Lufka founder Kelly Hawaii.
“Just imagine how much waste they’ve personally stopped consuming because they have that one container for that one product,” Hawaii said.
Refillable packaging is less a new invention than a return to earlier distribution models. Many industries historically relied on refillable or returnable containers, with familiar examples in the U.S. including soda, beer and dairy in the recent past.
A 2020 study of reusable packaging explains that a shift to single-use packaging took hold mainly because disposable systems simplified logistics and reduced handling costs for producers and retailers. That transition contributed to a steady increase in packaging production and waste over time as reuse infrastructure declined, according to the study published in Resources, Conservation & Recycling: X.
In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in reuse as part of a broader move toward a “circular economy” that keeps products and materials in use longer to limit waste. The Public Interest Research Group estimates there are hundreds of refillable stores around the country, part of what it calls a “generation of new businesses” aimed at reducing packaging waste.
Larger chains and brands are also offering refillable options and other innovations. Lush Cosmetics sells certain products “naked,” without packaging, and offers discounts to customers who return containers from its other products. The reusable packaging platform Loop, available in France, partners with major brands such as Nestle and Coca-Cola to distribute products in durable containers that are collected, cleaned and refilled for reuse.
Despite this resurgence, refillable packaging makes up a small share of the overall market. The systems face barriers to expansion, including hygiene requirements and the need for systems to collect and process containers, according to the study, which also noted that these additional processing and cleaning costs may make them more expensive.
Reusing vessels for everyday products has advantages over recycling single-use packages, as long as people follow a thoughtful approach, according to experts.
Shelie Miller, a University of Michigan professor who studies sustainability, said consumers should think of the phrase “reduce, reuse, recycle” as a priority order, meaning reuse should generally come before recycling.
Still, reuse doesn’t automatically mean lower environmental impact. Durable reusable containers typically require more energy and materials to produce, so they need to be used long enough to offset the resources that go into them, Miller said. What this means is that the environmental advantage emerges only after repeated use spreads those initial impacts across many uses, which Miller refers to as a “payback period.” How much water and electricity consumers use at home to clean reusable products also factors in.
A 2021 study by Miller and a colleague examined reusable products including drinking straws, forks and coffee cups and measured their payback periods in separate categories including greenhouse gas emissions, water use and energy demand. The study found that a ceramic coffee mug must be reused between 4 and 32 times before outperforming disposable cups on those measures, which represented faster paybacks than reusable coffee cups made from metal or plastic.
Convenience also plays a role. If refilling requires a special trip, the added transportation emissions can cancel out the benefits, making refill systems most effective when they fit into existing routines.
“If you are making dedicated trips just to reduce packaging, it actually can be worse for the environment than if you use the single-use product,” said Miller.
Large beauty retailers such as Ulta Beauty and Sephora are also partnering with Pact Collective, a nonprofit that collects hard-to-recycle beauty packaging through in-store bins.
Carly Snider, executive director of Pact Collective, said the program collects packaging made of mixed materials that regular recycling programs can't process or small pieces measuring less than 2 inches (5 centimeters) — like pumps, droppers and sample-sized containers — that fall through the cracks of machines at recycling facilities.
“There’s specific things with beauty packaging that makes it really difficult,” said Snider.
Pact routes those materials through specialized processing, diverting large volumes of material from landfills, said Snider.
Experts emphasize that refilling and recycling programs aren’t a perfect solution, but when they replace single-use packaging and fit into everyday life, they can help reduce waste.
“Small things do add up,” Miller said. “And so when you have millions of people who are all doing small things, that really can make a difference, make a change.”
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Aaralyn Holt refills essential oil bottles at Lufka Refillable Zero Waste store Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Aaralyn Holt refills laundry detergent containers at Lufka Refillable Zero Waste store Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Aaralyn Holt refills bottles at Lufka Refillable Zero Waste store Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
President Donald Trump on Monday threatened countries around the world to abide by any tariff deals they agreed to despite the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down many of his far-reaching taxes on imports. And he said he wants a global tariff of 15%, up from 10% he had announced immediately after the ruling.
The court’s Friday decision struck down tariffs Trump had imposed on nearly every country using an emergency powers law. But the Republican president won’t let go of his favorite tool for rewriting the rules of global commerce and applying international pressure.
“Any Country that wants to “play games” with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have “Ripped Off” the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to,” Trump posted Monday on Truth Social.
One of Trump's executive orders says he can bypass Congress and impose a 10% tax on imports from around the world starting Tuesday, the same day as his State of the Union speech.
The Latest:
There is no way Trump or anyone can know that. But the Republican president has received high marks in his second term for practically cutting off the flow of illegal immigration into the U.S. from Mexico, and says he would have done the same thing back then had he not lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden.
Trump is using the event to repeat false claims that he only lost because the election was rigged. But there is no evidence to support his allegations.
Trump lost dozens of court challenges, his own attorney general found no evidence of widespread fraud, and reviews, audits and recounts in the battleground states where he contested his loss all affirmed Biden’s victory.
Allyson Phillips, the mother of Laken Riley, thanked Trump for the work he’s done to honor her daughter and others who have been killed by people in the U.S. illegally. She said public perception of the president is different than the man she has come to know.
“You have fought a fight that most people wouldn’t want to have to fight,” she said. “There are just not enough words to say, because if you’ve lived the nightmare that we have lived you understand the importance of the job he is doing.”
Phillips remembered her daughter as “the most responsible, hardworking, kind, selfless, beautiful Christian.” She added: “She didn’t make bad choices. She was just a good girl. She just wanted to go for a run that morning.”
“Angel families” is a term the Trump administration is using to refer to relatives of people killed by someone who was illegally in the U.S.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a social media post on Sunday night that Trump was signing a proclamation designating “Angel Family Day.”
The event is meant to recognize Laken Riley and families like hers. The 22-year-old Georgia nursing student was killed in February 2024 while out jogging. Jose Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan man, is now serving a life term for her murder. Ibarra had been arrested for illegally entering the U.S. and released to pursue his case in immigration court.
Riley’s case became a flashpoint in the debate over immigration, and the first bill Trump signed into law in his second term was named for Riley. Trump says today is a “truly solemn occasion.”
Judge Cannon’s ruling blocking the release of a special counsel report on Trump’s hoarding of classified documents might not be the end of the fight.
Though both the Justice Department and Trump had pushed for the report to be permanently shelved, media organizations had been pushing for the document’s release and had argued that it was in the public interest for it to come out.
They could presumably move to appeal Cannon’s ruling to a higher court.
Smith and his team produced a two-volume report on investigations into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and his retention of classified documents at his Florida estate following his first term. Both indictments were abandoned by Smith’s team after Trump’s November 2024 election win, in light of longstanding Justice Department legal opinions that sitting presidents cannot face federal prosecution.
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The Supreme Court will hear from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change.
The case out of Boulder, Colorado is one of series of lawsuits alleging the companies deceived the public about how fossil fuels contribute to climate change.
It’s part of a wave of legal actions around the country and world trying to leverage action on climate change through the courts.
Backed by the Trump administration, the companies say the lawsuits wrongly threaten the industry.
The case is expected to be heard in the fall.
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Stocks are treading water on Wall Street after Trump ramped up his newest tariffs, pegging them at 15% on Saturday after saying they would be 10% just the day before. Trump is reacting to the Supreme Court ruling striking down his sweeping taxes on imports from around the world. Trump’s quick shift toward even more aggressive tariffs shows how much uncertainty still hangs over the global economy.
Despite Friday’s ruling, tariffs aren’t going away, and Trump said Monday he expects other countries to abide by trade agreements based on the tariffs that have been overturned.
“Any Country that wants to “play games” with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have “Ripped Off” the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
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The Islamic Republic of Iran faces both the threat of a U.S. military strike and new protests at home as the United States and Iran prepare to hold their next round of nuclear talks Thursday in Geneva.
Oman’s foreign minister, Badr al-Busaidi, confirmed the talks after Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, told CBS in an interview that he expected to meet U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva on Thursday. Araghchi said a “good chance” remained for a diplomatic solution on the nuclear issue.
The Trump administration has built up the largest U.S. military presence in the Middle East in decades as it pushes its longtime adversary for concessions on its nuclear program and more.
Trump warned on Friday that limited strikes against Iran are possible, and both Iran and the U.S. have signaled they are prepared for war if the talks on Tehran’s nuclear program fail.
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A federal judge on Monday permanently barred the release of a report by special counsel Jack Smith’s report on his investigation into Trump’s hoarding of classified documents.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, granted a request from the Republican president to keep under wraps the report detailing Smith’s findings in the probe that resulted in criminal charges in 2023.
Cannon, who in 2024 dismissed the case after concluding that Smith was unlawfully appointed, said the release of the report would present a “manifest injustice” to Trump and his two co-defendants.
“Special Counsel Smith, acting without lawful authority, obtained an indictment in this action and initiated proceedings that resulted in a final order of dismissal of all charges,” she wrote.
A State Department official says the U.S. has ordered nonessential diplomats and family members to leave Lebanon as tensions over Iran rise with the threat of a potentially imminent military strike.
The official said a continuous assessment of the regional security environment determined it was “prudent” to draw down the U.S. Embassy’s footprint so that only essential personnel remained at their posts.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been formally announced, said that it is a temporary measure and that the embassy remained operational Monday.
A second department official, also speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that had not been formally announced, said Secretary of State Marco Rubio may delay his intended visits to Israel this weekend.
President Trump will stand before Congress on Tuesday to deliver the annual State of the Union address to a transformed nation.
One year back in office, Trump has emerged as a president defying conventional expectations. He’s executed a head-spinning agenda, upending priorities at home, shattering alliances abroad and challenging the nation’s foundational system of checks and balances. Two Americans were killed by federal agents while protesting the Trump administration’s immigration raids and mass deportations.
As the lawmakers sit in the House chamber listening to Trump’s agenda for the year ahead, the moment is an existential one for the Congress, which has essentially become sidelined by his expansive reach, the Republican president bypassing his slim GOP majority to amass enormous power for himself.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio travels to the Caribbean island of St. Kitts and Nevis this week to reassert the Trump administration’s interests in the Western Hemisphere just a month after the U.S. military operation that removed former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
With the eyes of much of the world on the U.S military buildup in the Middle East and President Donald Trump’s threats to attack Iran, Rubio will make a one-day visit to St. Kitts on Wednesday to participate in a summit of leaders from the Caribbean Community, the State Department said.
Trump’s action against Maduro coupled with an increasingly aggressive posture aimed at eliminating drug trafficking and illegal migration have proven a concern for many in the region although they’ve also won support from many smaller states.
In numerous group and bilateral meetings, Rubio intends to discuss ways to promote regional security and stability, trade and economic growth.
President Donald Trump speaks at the National Governors Association dinner at the White House, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
President Donald Trump attends the National Governors Association dinner at the White House, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
