Bausch + Lomb reports nearly 725,000 pounds of eye care product materials recycled by company

Bausch + Lomb’s ONE by ONE Recycling program, developed in collaboration with TerraCycle, has collected and recycled 119,715,074 units, or 724,922 pounds, of used contact lenses and eye care materials in the US, according to the company.¹

The program is designed to address waste from items such as contact lenses, blister packs, and solution caps, which are typically not accepted in municipal recycling systems due to their size and material composition. The company noted that these materials may otherwise enter landfills or waterways, with an estimated 6 to 10 metric tons of contact lenses entering US wastewater annually.¹

“Seeing this program continue to grow year after year reinforces how powerful collective action can be,” said Amy Butler, vice president of Global Environment, Health, Safety and Sustainability at Bausch + Lomb, in the release. “The ONE by ONE program makes it easy for eye care practices and patients to make a real, measurable difference, and this latest collection milestone demonstrates just how meaningful those small actions can be.”

Participating eye care practices and patients contribute to the collection and recycling of used materials. For each qualifying shipment of 10 pounds or more from a registered practice, a $1 per pound donation is made to Optometry Giving Sight, an organization focused on preventing blindness and vision impairment.¹

“The amount of single-use material that moves through an eye care practice adds up quickly,” said Kriti Bhagat, OD, FAAO, owner and founder of Eyediology Vision in Providence, Rhode Island, in the release. “Being able to recycle many of these items through the ONE by ONE program has become an important part of how we run our practice – it demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and helps our patients build positive recycling habits around the eye health materials they use each day.”

Bausch + Lomb said the program supports its broader sustainability efforts, which are measured through its “FEWW” metrics: fuel, energy, water, and waste. The company also operates the Every Contact Counts recycling program in Canada, which has collected more than 78,269 pounds of used eye care materials since its launch in 2019.¹

Reference:

1. Bausch + Lomb reports nearly 725,000 pounds of contact lens, lens care and eye care materials collected and recycled through ONE By ONE Recycling program. News release. Businesswire. April 16, 2026. Accessed April 22, 2026. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260416530425/en/Bausch-Lomb-Reports-Nearly-725000-Pounds-of-Contact-Lens-Lens-Care-and-Eye-Care-Materials-Collected-and-Recycled-Through-ONE-By-ONE-Recycling-Program