Kontoor Brands targets to source 100% sustainable cotton by 2025

US-based global lifestyle apparel company, Kontoor Brands, which owns the Wrangler and Lee brands, released its 2020 Sustainability Report, the company’s second report in its two years as a publicly traded organization, building on its previous commitments and stated goals.

The report details Kontoor’s progress in advancing its sustainability agenda focusing on People, Product, and Planet – operating with the highest standards of ethics and transparency, seeking to source sustainable products and materials from partners who share its values – in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and Sustainable Accounting Standard Board (SASB) standards.

As per the report it sourced 50% of its cotton responsibly in 2020, but says there is still more it can do to make significant environmental and social progress.

Scott Baxter, Kontoor Brands president, CEO and chair of the Kontoor Brands board, said that while their sustainability targets are new, they are determined to build on the success to date and recognize that they have much more to do.

Baxter added that at Kontoor, sustainability is in their DNA — it’s a key element of how they do business around the world. While they are satisfied with their first efforts as described in the report, they recognize that there is still much more to be done. They’re dedicated to harnessing their size and purpose-driven approach to generate real environmental and social gains for all of their stakeholders as they move forward.

According to the report, Kontoor aims to not only establish and achieve its own ambitious goals but also to share lessons learned and best practices so that others can apply lessons learned and best practices transparently in their own manufacturing operations.

The report, which covers the period from January 1 to December 31, 2020, highlights firm achievements such as on pace to achieve 100% sustainable cotton in all goods by 2025.

According to the research, Kontoor Brands’ initiatives are focused on circularity and diverting materials from landfills, as well as cooperating with Business for Social Responsibility’s HERproject to increase access to healthcare knowledge and services for Bangladeshi textile workers.

The report states that Kontoor has cut its water consumption by more than 8 billion liters since 2008 and that it is on track to save 10 billion liters by 2025.

The business emphasized the social aspect of sustainability by establishing community development projects in Bangladeshi factories. The projects aim to give local workers clean water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities, as well as education.

The report also stated that Kontoor is on pace to employ 100 percent preferred chemistry by 2025, and that it plans to establish a climate target for carbon emissions in 2022.

Within its industrial chain, Kontoor has a diverse set of initiatives. The business has worked with Business for Social Responsibility’s Herproject, which aims to increase access to healthcare for textile workers in Bangladesh, in addition to concentrating on circularity and diverting materials from landfills.

Jeff Frye, vice president of procurement, product development, innovation, and sustainability at Kontoor Brands, said that although their industry faced significant uncertainty over the last two years, they have used this time to strengthen their resolve to meet their goals and set new ones – for our people, products, and the planet. They’re tremendously proud of the accomplishments they’ve done throughout this time, and they’ve come together as a team to keep working toward a more resilient future.