After committing to organic cotton in 1996, Patagonia began supporting farmers to grow cotton using Regenerative Organic Certified® practices, which prioritizes organic, no- and low-till methods that build healthy soil and respect the welfare of people and animals. They piloted a first crop of Regenerative Organic Certified cotton in India in 2018, working with more than 150 farmers to implement this highest organic standard. Since then, the cotton program has grown to include over 1,000 farmers.

An ever-growing number of our products are Fair Trade Certified™ for sewing, which means we pay a premium to the workers in the factories that make them. The Fair Trade program also helps to create better working conditions and safeguards against the use of child labor.

fairtradecertified.org

Every textile Patagonia uses is the result of a complicated manufacturing process, making it difficult for them to evaluate all the raw materials, dyes and chemical auxiliary materials each of their suppliers use. bluesign® technologies, based in Switzerland, helps with this analysis, working at each step in the textile supply chain to assess and approve chemicals, processes, materials and products that are safe for the environment, workers and customers.

Nylon is one of the strongest plastics we use in our products. When we need a super-lightweight fabric, nylon is vital for its strength. But nylon is a petroleum-based material, and producing it has a high cost in energy and greenhouse gases. Incorporating as much recycled nylon as we can lessens our dependence on virgin petroleum as a raw material source, helps eliminate discarded material and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing.