Polartec, a premium creator of innovative and sustainable textile solutions, announced that its parent organization, Milliken & Company, now holds approved science-based net-zero targets.
Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a United Nations-backed collective dedicated to helping companies set emission reduction targets consistent with climate science and the Paris Agreement, verified Milliken’s short- and long-term targets earlier this summer. These targets apply to Milliken’s entire business portfolio, including the Polartec brand.
“Polartec’s commitment to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions aligns with our brand vision of sustainable science and the pledge to continually do better,” said Dan Patterson, interim president and chief financial officer of Polartec. “It is our driving force, together with Milliken as a whole, to promote the importance of circularity, transparency, natural resources, and sustainability which ensures a future rooted in mindful manufacturing and reduced impact on our environment.”
SBTi calculates that companies committed to cutting emissions in line with climate science now represent $38 trillion, or one third, of the global economy. Milliken is one of the first 50 companies globally to achieve approved science-based net-zero targets and joins a group of more than 1,400 companies that have made net-zero commitments using the 2021 SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard. Milliken is the first company to be approved in South Carolina, where its global headquarters is located.
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“Not all net-zero is the same, which is why Milliken and Polartec commit to reaching real net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain by 2050 from a 2018 base year,” said Kasel Knight, general counsel and head of sustainability at Milliken. “By working with SBTi, our net-zero commitment, along with our approved near-term and long-term targets, has been fully vetted by the best available science on a global scale.”
Since inventing the original Polar Fleece in 1981, Polartec engineers continue to advance the science of fabric by creating problem solving technologies that improve the user experience. Polartec fabrics offer a wide range of functionality, including lightweight wicking and cooling, warmth and insulation, breathable weather protection, fire resistance, and enhanced durability. Polartec products are used by performance, lifestyle, and workwear brands from around the world, the U.S. Military and allied militaries, and contract upholstery markets.
SBTi is a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute and the World Wide Fund for Nature and sone of the We Mean Business Coalition commitments.