Do you own L’Oreal Colour Riche “True Red” — with its 0.65 ppm of lead? That lipstick was the lead-iest lipstick tested by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics — which found lead in 61% of the 33 lipsticks it tested— despite the fact that lead wasn’t listed as an ingredient in any of them.

If you knew about this lead issue but held onto your old tube of “True Red” anyway, you’re not alone. Many people just don’t like throwing away lipstick they’ve already paid for. But now a greener beauty and cosmetics company’s giving you an incentive for getting rid of your leaden lipsticks.

German natural beauty company Lavera wants you to mail in your old lipstick to get a $10 coupon emailed to you for one of their lead-free lipsticks. Lavera’s lipsticks cost $19, so you’ll be getting more than 50% off your new lipstick — making it about the same price as the lead-y L’Oreal lipstick.

Lavera calls its lipsticks “organic,” but do keep in mind that this doesn’t mean Lavera’s lipsticks as a whole are organic certified. Instead, the lipstick contains some organic ingredients like organic shea butter, jojoba and almond oil– and don’t contain lead or parabens. I tried putting Lavera lipstick ingredients through Environmental Working Group’s cosmetic safety database; they all scored in the “low risk” category. I haven’t tried one of their lipsticks yet though — but I’m going to take advantage of this deal and will report back after a lip test.

Send your old lipstick — along with your email address — to  Lavera Skin Care North America, 12015 115th Ave NE, Suite E110, Kirkland, WA 98034 — to take advantage of this deal.

Update, 9/3/09: FDA finds lead in every lipstick tested, refuses to name brands

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