How Sustainable is Allbirds?

24 billion pairs — that’s the number of shoes that were produced globally in 2022. Most of these shoes are entirely or partly made from synthetic materials. Synthetic materials are derived from plastic, which comes from fossil fuel, a leading driver of the climate crisis.

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Sustainable footwear brand Allbirds is replacing this plastic with natural materials like wool and tree fibers.

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About Allbirds shoes

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Hailing from New Zealand, co-founder Tim Brown was well-versed in the magical qualities of Merino wool grown in the country. Allbirds' journey began when Tim started questioning the absence of Merino wool in the footwear industry.

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He teamed up with co-founder Joey Zwillinger, an engineer and renewables expert, to craft a revolutionary wool fabric made specifically for footwear.

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Allbirds product line includes sneakers, shoes, and slippers for women and men. Allbirds also sells apparel items like socks, underwear, tees, and sweatshirts.

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All of its products come with a no-question-asked, 30-day free return policy.

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What makes Allbirds sustainable?

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Right from sourcing the raw materials to shipping and returns, Allbirds has taken multiple initiatives to reduce the impact of its products on the planet:

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• It replaces synthetic materials like plastic with natural ones like Merino wool. It uses castor bean oil for insoles, recycled plastic bottles for laces, and sugarcane to make SweetFoam® shoe soles.
• Allbirds has even created proprietary materials like TENCEL™ Lyocell, which is sourced from wood grown in South Africa, and a soft, breathable fiber Trino®, a combination of renewable materials Tree + Merino.
• Wherever possible, Allbirds uses recycled nylon (also made of plastic) to keep it out of landfills.
• All the Allbirds factories must pass a social and environmental audit. None of the Allbirds suppliers are allowed to work with any subcontractor for Allbirds products without written permission from Allbirds. This gives it more control over its supply chain and the raw materials used
• All of Allbirds’ returned products are either listed on Allbirds ReRun™ or are donated to its partner organization Soles4Souls. This extends the life of the shoes and lowers Allbirds’ impact on the planet.
• Its packaging is made from 90% recycled cardboard, reducing the amount of virgin cardboard and trees cut in the process.
• It purchases climate-neutral, B Corp-certified carbon offsets to sequester the carbon emissions generated by its products.

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What certifications do Allbirds products have?

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• Certified B Corp: Balancing profit and purpose while meeting the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance.
• Climate Neutral Certified: Continuously measuring, reducing, and offsetting emissions generated from making and delivering its products and services.

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This post reflects most of the brand’s sustainability efforts as of December 2023. Brands make more progress over time, so their website may have more recent information.