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“100% Plastic Free? We Failed.” icebreaker’s uncompromising transparency on not yet achieving plastic-free goals

February 1, 2024

Embracing challenges and celebrating progress as the brand states ‘The last 4% is the hardest, but we’ll get there’

DENVER (Feb. 1, 2024) /OUTDOOR SPORTSWIRE/ – In a bold move on their ongoing journey to transparency, icebreaker proudly announces the brand’s failure of only reaching 96.14% plastic-free fibres. In 2020, the brand set the “plastic-free goal by 2023”, at the time 87% of their fibres were natural or plant-based. Today, the brand highlights the acknowledgment of haven’t reached the goal but takes pride in all their remarkable achievements: while significant progress has been made, the final 4% will be even more rewarding.

Failure goes hand in hand with opportunities to learn, evolve and grow. The brand – known for its commitment to taking unnecessary plastic out of performance apparel – embraces failure as a stepping stone on the path to evolution. The brand will continue to innovate to 100% plastic free, and with the end in sight, icebreaker is now taking a proactive stance by establishing their next aim: to source 100% of its wool from growers that are using regenerative practices by 2028, through a close partnership with the growers and The New Zealand Merino Company.

Embracing this journey and showing an unwavering dedication to nature, icebreaker continues to help pave the way towards a petrochemical-free future, having already substituted 14% of the remaining synthetic content in our styles with bio-based alternatives, not choosing the easiest path, but the right one.

Tracing 100% of merino wool to its source exemplifies the brand’s commitment to responsible sourcing. Strengthening relationships, the brand highlights their groundbreaking 10-year supply contract between icebreaker and growers, showcasing the dedication to fostering strong relationships throughout their global supply chain, and supporting responsible stewardship of the ecosystems within which they operate.

icebreaker’s involvement as one of the founding partners of NZM ZQRX programme, with 100% of its Growers Club members participating, underscores the brand’s commitment to partnering for the betterment of the planet. This programme supports icebreaker’s mission to transition to regeneratively grown wool, a key milestone towards their vision of sourcing 100% of their wool from growers that are using regenerative practices by 2028.

icebreaker emphasizes that the journey is as important as the destination, with a nod to the last 4% being even more rewarding and where they will carve out most meaningful achievements. icebreaker remains steadfast in its commitment to pave the way for a future where sustainability becomes the most beaten path, not the most difficult.

There has never been a better time to move to natural.

The 2024 Transparency Update is now available to view at www.icebreaker.com/en-us/transparency. For more information about icebreaker and the Transparency Update, please contact Senior Account Manager Kevin McCormack at kevin.mccormack@rygr.us.

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About icebreaker: Founded in 1995 in New Zealand, icebreaker pioneered the ethical and sustainable production of natural performance apparel. Now a part of the VF Corporation, icebreaker continues to challenge the status quo while championing natural, transparent, and responsible ways to do business. icebreaker looks to nature for the answers and for innovative ways to do more with less. Working with what nature provides and adapting as nature does, icebreaker enables consumers to join a movement towards choosing natural and preserving the planet for generations to come. icebreaker clothing is available in more than 5,000 stores in 50 countries through wholesale, Touch Lab retail stores and e-commerce platforms. www.icebreaker.com 

Contact: 

Kevin McCormack

kevin.mccormack@rygr.us

970-924-0704 ext: 2101