Many of our everyday JACK & JONES essentials are made using cotton, and we are getting serious about sourcing alternatives living up to certain standards in order to protect biodiversity, improve soil health and work environment as part of our our A/BETTER WORLD promise.

For our Organic Basic, we use 100% third party certified organic cotton. We also use 50% certified organic cotton to make our Organic Basic Crew and Hoodie with the remaining 50% sourced through the Better Cotton.

We are stepping up our use of certified organic cotton across our brand because it is better for the hands that grow it and the land it is grown on. Want to know why?

● Switching part of our cotton supply from conventional to organic last year cut our CO2 emissions by 48%*

● It is free from pesticides, artificial fertilizers and genetic modification, cutting out chemicals that could be harmful to our farmers

● Organic agriculture improves soil fertility, moisture and biodiversity over time

● Third party certifications ensures that working conditions are regulated, there is no discrimination and all human rights are met

INCREASING OUR USE OF ORGANIC COTTON

As part of our focus on our A/BETTER WORLD, Better Materials, we have a goal to source 30% of our cotton from certified organic sources by 2025, with as much as possible fully traceable – meaning we can track it right back to the farm where it was grown.

However, less than 1% of all cotton available on the market is organic, and tracing and verifying cotton’s organic credentials can be challenging. So to support this goal, we are part of an exciting “direct-to-farm” initiative that will help us source more organic cotton while linking our manufacturers more directly to the farmers on the ground.

For now, we are supplementing our organic cotton usage with cotton sourced through the Better Cotton (BC). This means it has been grown in compliance with BC’s seven principles, including minimizing the harmful impact of crop protection practices, caring for the health of the soil and the promotion of decent work.

PARTNERING WITH FORWARD-THINKING MANUFACTURERS

We would not be driving the sustainability initiatives we are today without our team of our Better Manufacturing partners.

Our long-time manufacturing partner GMS makes our Organic Basic Tee, Crew and Hoodie. Its factory in Bangladesh is LEED® Platinum certified – the top standard for green buildings – and has its own solar energy system. Check out our interview with GMS’ executive director Mustafa for more on this, and the other amazing social and environmental work they do.

For example, GMS is using lower impact ways to give our Organic Basic range their popping colors, with poly-reactive dyes and high-tech low-liquor ratio dyeing machines. Together with a low temperature soaping agent, this reduces the energy and water needed to make these styles.

They also use third party dyestuffs. Plus, any wastewater leftover makes its way through their Effluent Treatment Plant and is recycled for day-to-day uses like cleaning and gardening.

BETTER BASICS, BIGGER IMPACT

Basics are where we have the biggest potential to reduce our environmental impact, and we will not settle for anything less. We are using these product lines to make change at scale, even if it means talking about progress, not perfection. That is why we will keep cleaning up the styles that will proudly be on our shelves, and yours, for years to come.

*Based on Higg 3.1.1. Data at Higg.org. Percentage reductions apply to the raw material phase.