New PFAS Scorecard for Popular Apparel Brands: Levi Strauss Earns an ‘A+’, Outdoor Brands Fail

WASHINGTON — NRDC (Natural Methods Protection Council, Inc.), Style FWD, and U.S. PIRG Education Fund introduced a to start with-of-its type scorecard position PFAS plan commitments from a swath of major retail and apparel makes. Levi Strauss & Co. gained the best mark for now removing PFAS from its offer chain. Having said that, worldwide brand names like Macy’s, Inc., Nordstrom, Costco, and other folks received small or failing marks. 

Popular outdoor manufacturers largely been given bad grades–despite vocal purchaser bases getting anxious with environmental and general public wellbeing. Columbia Sportswear, REI, Wolverine All over the world (mum or dad organization of Wolverine and Merrell), and some others received “F”s. Patagonia Inc. gained a “B”, the greatest rating in the sector, as the only out of doors brand with a determination to stage out all PFAS in all items by 2024.

PFAS are a significant class of harmful “forever chemicals” that pose an immediate menace to air, drinking water, and customer item basic safety across the United States. The class of chemicals are extremely cell and difficult to crack down, resulting in popular contamination in the setting with inefficient possibilities for mass cleansing. When ingested, PFAS have been connected to overall health difficulties like cancer, liver harm, weakened immune techniques, and developmental problems in little ones.

The following are statements from co-authors of the scorecard:

“This scorecard empowers customers to use their shopping ability for very good. Commitments from significant apparel brand names and vendors, alongside comprehensive policy alterations, can appreciably support beat PFAS air pollution. It is primarily unacceptable and ironic for the outdoor clothing room to have scored as poorly as they did. We will need to keep multibillion dollar out of doors brands like Columbia accountable for exacerbating the PFAS disaster.” – Sujatha Bergen, Director, Overall health Campaigns, NRDC

“Many businesses are unsuccessful to label PFAS use in their goods as effectively as use outdated definitions and misleading terminology in their commitments all over PFAS that are inconsistent with the vast majority of the intercontinental and scientific communities. These outdated definitions and lack of labeling can end result in client confusion about no matter if the products they obtain incorporate PFAS and reduce them from generating the best alternative for on their own, their households, and the ecosystem.” – Alexandra Quinn, Founder and CEO, Vogue FWD

“PFAS contamination can arise in the course of the whole lifecycle of clothing manufacturing. It pollutes our waters, can be ingested by young children in the residence, winds up in landfills, or incinerated and handed into the air. To successfully tackle PFAS contamination, clothes models need to end using dangerous permanently chemical compounds and swap them with safer alternate options.” – Emily Rogers, Advocate, Zero Out Toxics, U.S. PIRG Education and learning Fund

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NRDC (Purely natural Sources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million customers and on line activists. Due to the fact 1970, our attorneys, experts, and other environmental professionals have labored to shield the world’s pure means, community health and fitness, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York Town, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Stop by us at www.nrdc.org and abide by us on Twitter @NRDC.

Vogue FWD is a U.S. nonprofit on a mission to do away with the destructive results on human beings and the setting from chemical substances made use of in textile production by driving much better purchaser buys and enhanced model practices. We do this by means of driving shopper education and learning and action. Stop by us at www.fashionfwd.org and abide by us on instagram @trend_FWD to get concerned and discover far more.

U.S. PIRG Education and learning Fund is an unbiased, non-partisan team that performs for buyers and the general public curiosity. As a result of investigate, public education and learning and outreach, we serve as counterweights to the influence of highly effective particular interests that threaten our wellbeing, safety or very well-remaining.