Sustainable
materials and
processes for
a sound earth

Using recycled materials 

Our target is to switch 100% of the polyester used in our shoes and sportwear products to be recycled polyester. This will help us achieve our science-based target and contribute to making our products more sustainable.

From the 2021 spring & summer season, we use recycled polyester for more than 95% of new performance running shoe products. We have also used other recycled materials in our products. In Europe, we sold products with fabric made of Ocean Waste Plastic. The plastic was sourced from PET bottles recovered from beaches in Sri Lanka, and our local supply chain partner Hirdaramani processed the bottles into new polyester. We used this material in an in-line collection of shirts and all marathon event shirts.

Using Responsible natural materials

Increasingly, consumers want to know more about the background of branded products and materials, particularly natural materials. We have several initiatives focusing on the sustainable use of materials including leather and cotton. In addition, managing high-risk material is very important to improve our transparency for human rights. ASICS collaborates with TrusTrace to track the transaction of specific style and material from raw material to final products in centralized digital platform

Leather

Leather is the most significant natural material we use in our footwear in terms of volume. Since 2018, ASICS has been a member of the Leather Working Group (LWG), a multi-stakeholder group promoting sustainable leather manufacturing practices. Our membership helps ensure that our leather products are responsibly sourced, and it supports our shift to sourcing more sustainable leather.

Cotton

The use of cotton is limited but one of the natural fibers used for ASICS apparel products. We aim to source 100% more sustainable cotton by 2025. Since 2019, ASICS has been a member of Better Cotton (BC). BC works with a diverse range of stakeholders across the cotton supply chain to promote measurable and continuing improvements for the environment, farming communities, and the economies of cotton-producing areas.

Support for sustainable choices

Our ASICS Materials Guideline provides guidance for making ethical, compliant, clean and sustainable choices in product development and sourcing. It covers materials such as animal- based materials, PVC and conflict minerals. The guideline also includes specific guidance on recycled materials traceability, vegan friendly products, and sustainable packaging, including the Global Recycled Standard (GRS).

Packaging

We aim to eliminate single-use plastic throughout the supply chain; where plastic is necessary, we consider reducing the amount used, replacing it with recycled plastic, and switching to more sustainable substitutes. We also aim to reduce packaging materials, and we recommend FSC- certified or recycled paper when using paper.

Bluesign® system

Bluesign® is a holistic system promoting a common set of standards for sustainability and traceability in textile manufacturing. We already work with many manufacturers that are bluesign® system partners, and in the future aim to buy our materials almost exclusively from bluesign® system partner suppliers.

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