HanesBrands is tackling the issue of wasteful product packaging with its latest recycling initiative.
The company has partnered with How2Recycle, which provides standardized recycling systems for brands across the U.S. and Canada, on a labeling system that helps consumers recycle product packaging effectively.
HanesBrands, owner of brands including Hanes, Playtex, Bali, Champion, Maidenform and more, distributes close to 500 million packages across the two countries. The company has begun the process of submitting its packaging components for review.
How2Recycle will assess the packaging and provide clear, concise labeling for each type, noting the makeup of the materials used, how to recycle each component, and what actions must be taken to prepare the package for recycling.
Hanes plans to release its first How2Recycle-labeled products in the next six months, beginning with men’s underwear and t-shirts. All of the company’s other product lines, including socks, bras, panties and activewear, will follow.
“As a major manufacturer of some of North America’s most popular brands of everyday basic innerwear and activewear apparel, we take responsibility for minimizing the environmental impacts of our operations, products and packaging,” Mike Faircloth, HanesBrands’ group president of global operations, American casual wear and e-commerce, said.
“Recycling is a vital part of HanesBrands’ environmental sustainability strategy, and joining forces with How2Recycle is an important step in including our consumers in this effort,” he added.
The newly announced partnership is just one way that the company is looking to further its ambitious goal of diverting 100 percent of its production waste from landfills by 2020. In a statement, HanesBrands claimed that 86 percent of its waste is already being recycled.
The company’s environmental stewardship goals also include reductions in non-renewable energy use and water waste, along with carbon emissions.
In 2018, HanesBrands managed to recycle more than 107 million pounds of fabrics, plastics and other materials from throughout its supply chain. The company also uses about 6 million pounds of recycled materials—including cotton fibers from fabric scrap waste and polyester yarns and fibers—in its line of products.
Hanes was the top-scoring apparel company in CDP’s 2018 Climate Change Report, which surveyed nearly 7,000 companies across different industries.