AFORE AFTER fabrics are woven and digitally printed in Spain, where we’ve built a close relationship with our textile manufacturer. Guided by the Sustainable Development Goals, their fabrics are sustainably produced and printed, ensuring an ethical supply chain for the workers who produce them, and their local communities. Along with producing and finishing fabrics that are certified Standard 100 by Oeko-Tex, our fabric partner is also registered with the ZDHC, a programme committed to Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals in textiles, reducing harm to the environment and human well-being.
Furthermore, in 2021 they created a strategic plan for sustainability with these actions:
Our textile manufacturer digitally prints our fabrics with water-based inks. Digital printing is an environmentally-friendly process requiring less resources, energy and water than traditional printing methods.
In 2021, our thread supplier announced the development of a new product innovation; 100% Lyocell thread. With our circular mission for mono-material garments, we immediately contacted them and became the first European brand to begin testing, sampling and finally producing garments made with their Lyocell thread. The many benefits of Lyocell fabric that are described above, including botanical origin, biodegradability, closed-loop production, strength and appearance, also apply for Lyocell thread, and are equally as beneficial. The wood pulp utilised in this thread is also responsibly-sourced and is Canopy and FSC compliant. Produced in Turkey, Lyocell thread is considered to be a breakthrough in producing garments with a clear end-of-life strategy built into them.
Because it is so new to the market, the certification for our Lyocell thread is currently in process, so please check back again and we will add it once it has completed validation.
In 2022, we stepped up our materials pledge by removing all technical necessity for fossil fuel-derived synthetic materials. Along with our fabric and thread, we are also using natural cellulose fibers in our labels to maintain a mono-material consistency in our garments. Made in Portugal from 100% Organic Cotton, our new printed labels are also fully biodegradable and compostable due to their cellulosic origin.
We are delighted to continue manufacturing with our popular ‘milk waste’ buttons. 100% bioplastic, this material is impressively certified in compliance with ISO 14855-1 standards which set out to determine “the ultimate aerobic biodegradability of plastic materials under controlled composting conditions”. Our buttons are made of at least 96% milk casein by our button supplier in France, who sources the milk from Ireland and brings it to a specialist factory in Italy where it is transformed into a bioplastic raw material. This milk is a by-product, coming from overproduction or productions that are unfit for human consumption. Like our other materials made from natural cellulose fibers, our buttons are also biodegradable to ensure our garments will be responsible for zero post-consumer waste.
*Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification is valid. Renewal certificate is in process so please check back again.When it came to packaging, we couldn’t find a functional and recyclable shipping solution with minimal material use in the market, and so we designed our very own, which we call ‘the bagvelope’. Due to the need for strength and durability during shipping, our recyclable bagvelope is made from 100% paper that is FSC, EU Ecolabel and Cradle to Cradle certified.
Elsewhere, we only use 100% recycled and recyclable paper materials for our branded packaging, which have many certifications such as Blue Angel, FSC Recycled, and EU Ecolabel.
All of our paper branded packaging is ethically made in Poland, and our manufacturer sources from paper suppliers in Germany and Austria.
We discovered that sticking printed waybill labels to our packaging can complicate the recycling process. Instead, we’ve switched to printing our shipping waybills on paper and attaching them inside a recyclable translucent paper document wallet. Made in Europe from 100% paper with no plastic, these biodegradable wallets, along with the paper waybills, do not have to be removed from our shipping bagvelope prior to recycling.
The final pieces of packaging material that we place in your hands are provided to us by Lenzing to confirm our product license with them as a registered brand. Lenzing have advised these are made of 100% recycled paper in Austria.
For information about carbon-neutral shipping, please see our Shipping information.
