Downlite, America’s premiere manufacturer of down and feather bedding, has become the first company in China to earn the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) certificate. The certification from RDS, the largest down supply chain in the world, guarantees businesses that the down in their products comes from ethically treated geese.
The North Face developed RDS together with Control Union, another certification organization, and Textile Exchange for research, writing, and stakeholder review.
Chad Altbaier, VP of sales and business development for Downlite said, “Responsibly-sourced down has always been part of our DNA, which is why we’ve embraced the RDS since its inception.” He added, “Because 80% of the world’s down comes from China, we prioritized Control Union’s audit of our high-quality goose down supply chain here first. Downlite is positioned to offer significant volumes of RDS certified white and grey goose down with a broad spectrum of qualities for the F15 and S16 apparel and sleeping bag seasons.”
Altbaier also mentioned that RDS certification audits for Downlite’s European supply chain are in progress, with certification expected soon after.