The Earth Polo, Ralph Lauren's Earth Day Initiative
On Monday, April 22, Ralph Lauren announced the launch of their 'Earth Polo' a 100 percent sustainable initiative -just in time for Earth Day. The Earth Polo is a classic Ralph Lauren Polo made of an innovative fabric entirely made from recycled plastic bottles (approximatively 12 per shirt) and is also entirely recyclable.
"For every Earth Polo produced, approximately 12 fewer bottles end up in the world’s landfills and oceans." States Ralph Lauren's website. The plastic is first flaked, then melted into pellets before extruding it into monofilaments and then spinning and knitting. Even the dyeing process, traditionally hugely wasteful of water, has been rethought to use no water at all. Each color is achieved via a unique carbon dyeing process that uses no water in the application of the dye.
The company pledged to recycle 170 million plastic bottles by 2025, a significant pledge for a global brand like Polo Ralph Lauren.
David Lauren, Polo’s chief innovation officer explained in an Esquire interview that this is just a part of an ongoing and expanding effort . "Sustainability is such an important topic today," he said, "and something that is really authentic to who we are as a brand and company." Ralph Lauren has always created products with a sense of timelessness that are meant to be worn and loved and passed on for generations.
On Earth Day, Ralph Lauren showed the example of how a small step can have a significant impact on the greater scale and invited other name brands to join the movement.
