When we're designing our gear, we have several goals, all equally important. Make the product highly functional for its intended use. Make it durable enough to last season after season. (Because throwing stuff away isn't doing anyone favors.) And, last but certainly not least, make it with the best and least-harmful materials and fabrics we can source. These days, some of the most high-performing fabrics out there come from recycled or sustainably-sourced materials. In those cases, it's a win win and an obvious choice for us.
The truth is that making gear that's intended to be used in the mountains is hard on the very wild places we love most. High-performance outerwear is resource rich—it uses tons of energy and materials to produce. Cutting corners on performance isn't an option. We don't want to send you out into a storm with a jacket that's not going to keep you dry.
That said, you deserve to know what impact your gear has on the planet, and we're excited about the progress we're making utilizing the most environmentally-sound materials. You can read more about our sustainability efforts here. For now, let's get to the nitty-gritty, shall we?
No More PFAS Forever Chemicals
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are found in chemicals that have previously been used in Durable Water Repellent (or DWR), a treatment commonly applied to outdoor gear like jackets or tents to help the fabric shed and repel water. PFAS are highly effective at repelling water, and the outdoor industry relied on this technology for decades for its most technical fabrics. But once released into the environment, those chemicals have been found to persist and break down. They distribute throughout the environment: water, snow, ice, soil, plants, animals (and yes, even in you). As a result, PFAS are now a globally recognized restricted substance.
For years, alongside the rest of the outdoor industry, we've been making a concerted effort to remove all PFAS from our gear and in fall 2024, we successfully eliminated these forever chemicals from our entire line. Whew. The best news is that we've switched to using Empel DWR, a molecularly bonded, super-hydrophobic exterior surface treatment that's PFA/PFC free and has been proven to offer 10 times the waterproof protection of other DWRs. (So you don't have to sacrifice waterproof performance.) Empel is also water-free and solvent free in its process, so it uses less resources across the board.
We Love Recycled Materials
It takes a lot of resources to make new raw materials. Whenever possible, we are using fabrics, materials, and insulation made from recycled post-consumer materials. Currently, around 80 percent of our gear is made from recycled materials and we're working on getting that number even higher. Without compromising performance, many of our most technical pieces now are made from fabrics spun from repurposed plastics and fibers, saving waste from the landfill and reducing our reliance on petroleum, while keeping you warm and dry.
We have a fabric that comes from discarded fishing lines, which helps remove industrial waste from the ocean while also avoiding the need to produce resource-heavy virgin nylons. Greenloft, our proprietary lightweight, packable synthetic insulation, will keep you dry when wet and is made from 100 percent recycled polyester.
What bluesign®-Approved Means
It all started in Switzerland in the late 1990s, when a group of people tried to produce a textile product that had the least environmental impact, as well as the highest safety and health standards for the factory workers and end consumers. None of that was easy and it required thorough analysis at every step of the supply chain. To help streamline this process and make those standards accessible to as many textile companies as possible, a new independent company was formed: bluesign.
These days, bluesign helps thousands of manufacturers and brands around the world reduce the footprint of their textiles, with a focus on chemical analysis and supply chain transparency. So, when we say that our products are bluesign® approved, that means they've been through a rigorous third-party evaluation process and the raw materials have met the highest level of environmental and workforce safety criteria. To earn this approval rating, bluesign conducts on-site assessments to analyze the environmental and chemical management status of the facility against bluesign's requirements.
Where Our Down Comes From
All of the down insulation found in our insulated products follows the Responsible Down Standard, which means all down and feathers come from farms with the highest level of humane animal welfare practices. The down insulation we use is also traceable to the source using Allied's Track My Down program, which means a transparent down supply chain sourced only from certified farms, backed by the most rigorous standards.
Responsible Down Standard, or RDS, means every feather used in our 800 or 600-fill down insulation has been third-party certified for safety standards, ensuring that all geese and ducks are raised by certified farms that meet the highest levels of animal welfare compliance and supply chain traceability.