Fruit of the Loom Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary, announced its new global sustainability plan Fruitful Futures, as it released its first-ever annual global sustainability report.
Fruitful Futures outlines the basics maker’s commitment to reduce the environmental impact of its global supply chain with science-based targets, as well as a plan to enhance the lives and communities of its global workforce.
Melissa Burgess Taylor, chairman and CEO of Fruit of the Loom, said Fruitful Futures is a “comprehensive sustainability plan, uniting our global employees under shared goals that further our commitments to our customers and consumers.”
Fruitful Futures connects Fruit of the Loom’s portfolio of brands that include Fruit of the Loom, Russell Athletic, Spalding and Vanity Fair, and its employees in purposeful work across three main pillars.
They are “People-Centric,” meant to enrich the lives of people and communities; “Planet-Conscious,” reducing the environmental impact of its operations and products, and “Product Authenticity,” sourcing sustainably from transparent supply chains.
Fruit of the Loom said the plan aligns with five United Nations Sustainable Development Goals–gender equality, clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, and responsible consumption and production.
In its 2019 sustainability report, the company said it achieved a 59 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in 2018 from a 2012 baseline in North and Central America, and a commitment to set targets aligned with the Science Based Targets initiative and achieve 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030.
The company reported that 89 percent of the cotton used by Fruit of the Loom was grown in the United States through Cotton LEADS, a program to advance sustainable agriculture practices in cotton production. The company has set goals to source 100 percent of cotton sustainably by 2025, and to increase sourcing of recycled polyester and nylon by 30 percent and packaging by 2030. It aims to increase recycled content in packaging by 2025.
The company also plans to ensure product safety with 100 percent Oeko-Tex certification for all global production made in its own facilities by 2025, and to have all of its global supply chain mapped to raw materials by 2025.
Headquartered in Bowling Green, Ky., Fruit of the Loom has a global team of more than 29,000 employees across 11 countries. Its products are sold in 89 countries. In 2019, it made 89 percent of its products in its own facilities, from managing textile production to sewing and distribution.
The majority of the production is located in Honduras and El Salvador, with other facilities in Australia, Haiti, Mexico, Morocco, Vietnam and the United States.
In addition, Fruit of the Loom said its leadership team is now 37 percent female and 39 percent of managers are female. In addition to continuing efforts on gender equality, the company’s goal is to finalize a comprehensive diversity and inclusion strategy this year.
“At Fruit of the Loom Inc., we have a rich 100-year history of providing the essential goods people all over the world need to flourish and thrive,” Taylor said. “We are committed to enriching our consumers’ lives. Fruitful Futures is our plan to make our world more fruitful for generations to come.”
