PUTZBRUNN, Germany (BRAIN) — The Gore Fabrics Division released its Responsibility Update, highlighting the company's sustainability achievements in 2020.
The report details how the fabrics division intends to use the newly introduced framework to provide sustainability solutions to customers and the industry.
Gore:
- Set new absolute carbon-reduction goals established to support achieving climate neutrality by 2050 to help contribute to the global effort toward mitigating climate change.
- Achieved goals set three years ago to have 85% of consumer garment laminates approved by bluesign Technologies — which traces each textile to ensure it's manufactured with the lowest possible environmental burden — and 100% of consumer garments laminates certified under OEKO-TEX Standard 100 — a well-known certification for textiles tested for harmful substances.
- Completed a three-year effort to triple the number of GORE-TEX laminates (to more than 150) that use textiles with recycled content and solution dyed-yarn.
- Shared environmental footprint data of the GORE-TEX consumer garments laminates through the Higg Materials Sustainability Index — an apparel industry tool to measure and score a material's environmental impacts — helping customers make informed decisions.
- Used the Higg Facility Tools, implemented to increase transparency around environmental and social impacts at Gore Fabrics manufacturing sites.
- Signed the manifesto of the international initiative S.O.S. SOIL — Save Organics in Soil by the Solid Waste Treatment Team of the Technical Oriented Fabrics business, with a goal to encourage climate-proof soil management practices.
- Updated the progress toward the elimination of Polyfluorinated Chemicals (PFC) of Environmental Concern from Gore Fabrics Division consumer products. PFCs — like those used until 2002 in the manufacturing of 3M's Scotchgard treatment — are fluoropolymer coatings and products resistant to heat, oil, stains, grease, and water.
Gore says these initiatives and collaborations are important as it strives to make a difference to the planet and people.
"I am pleased to see that in 2020, despite all of the challenges, we kept making substantial progress in many areas of our sustainability journey," said Ross MacLaine, the division's sustainability leader. "I am particularly proud of our carbon goals and our new sustainability framework. And I promise that we will continue to work hard on all the commitments we made within our evolved sustainability strategy: protecting people and the planet while prolonging product lifetime and the well-being of users."
