"Lightweighting" has become a popular industry term used to describe operations that reduce packaging weight by reducing the materials used in production. OEM manufacturers of cosmetics are finding increasing interest in lightweighting in the environmentally friendly cosmetics industry. This is because lightweight packaging consumes less raw materials and energy to produce, requires less fuel for transportation, and addresses environmental and sustainability concerns.

Lightweighting is most frequently applied to plastic bottles, cans, tubes, and caps. If a plastic package is lightweight, less resin is used in the injection molding process. The persistently high price of resin is a major reason why beauty companies are increasingly keen on lightweight packaging. For environmentally friendly cosmetics manufacturers producing organic and natural products, lightweighting is particularly helpful in their pursuit of "more sustainable" packaging claims.

However, lightweighting plastic bottles often requires considerable engineering design to ensure that less resin is properly distributed and that a uniform wall thickness is achieved. Experts emphasize the importance of stability testing for plastic packaging, stating, "Generally speaking, environmentally friendly cosmetics manufacturers have a responsibility to place their products in new containers and ensure they are satisfactory both in terms of shelf life and processing."

To determine whether packaging can be lightweight, each product and packaging solution needs to be tested on a case-by-case basis. There is no universally applicable guideline, as each product has different requirements.