Our targets
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Source 100% sustainable cotton1 We consider the following types of cotton to be sustainable: Sustainable cotton provided through third-party verified programs that support environmental and/or social sustainability improvements and/or outcomes. Sustainable cotton from third-party verified programs includes, for example, verified U.S.-grown cotton (USCTP), Better Cotton (formerly BCI), organic cotton, recycled or regenerative cotton, and fair-trade cotton. by 2025
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Zero manufacturing waste to landfill by 2027
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Source 30% recycled polyester or alternative fibre yarns by 2027
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75% recycled and sustainable packaging and trims by 2027
Governance
We have established a clear roadmap to implement circularity, governed by a comprehensive process and structure to help achieve our goals.
Both the Board of Directors and the Board’s Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility Committee receive updates on circularity achievements and challenges at each quarterly meeting. Our Senior Vice-President, Global Supply Chain, Sales, Marketing, and Distribution, and our Vice-President, Merchandising, Design, and Product Development, co-chair the circularity working group – a senior-level cross-functional group focused on meeting our circularity goals. In addition, monthly meetings bring together approximately 30 individuals from a variety of departments and geographies with role-specific objectives related to circularity.
Approach
On top of our overall mindful consumption of the earth’s resources, we are looking for ways to use more sustainable raw materials.
Cotton
Cotton represents approximately 80% of our total fibre input. We are increasing the amount of sustainable cotton2 We consider the following types of cotton to be sustainable: Sustainable cotton provided through third-party verified programs that support environmental and/or social sustainability improvements and/or outcomes. Sustainable cotton from third-party verified programs includes, for example, verified U.S.-grown cotton (USCTP), Better Cotton (formerly BCI), organic cotton, recycled or regenerative cotton, and fair-trade cotton. that we source, and we are working to ensure we have third-party verification in place through programs such as the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol (USCTP). Gildan has been a member of USCTP since 2021 and a manufacturing member of Better Cotton3 Better Cotton uses a “Mass Balance” system, which is a volume-tracking system that allows verified cotton to be substituted or mixed with conventional cotton by traders or spinners along the supply chain while ensuring that the amount of verified cotton sold never exceeds the amount of verified cotton purchased at all levels in the textile supply chain. since 2015 and is now also a retail member.
Approximately 90% of the cotton we consume is grown in the U.S.
Polyester
We use recycled polyester, a fibre made from recycled plastic bottles, to help divert plastic from landfills. The production of recycled polyester requires fewer resources than that of new fibres and generates fewer carbon dioxide emissions. All recycled polyester raw materials from yarn or fibre suppliers are certified by the Textile Exchange to either its Global Recycled Standard or its Recycled Claim Standard.4 The Global Recycle Standard (GRS) is an international, voluntary product standard that sets out requirements for third-party certification of recycled content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices, and chemical restrictions. It applies to the full supply chain and verifies and tracks recycled raw materials through the supply chain. The GRS is intended for use with any product that contains at least 20% recycled material.
Our goal is also to be able to leverage the use of recycled materials such as polyester while maintaining quality, consistency, and printability. As such, we are not just reducing our environmental impact but also making sustainability more accessible for everyone. We will continue to look for and develop new, more sustainable fibre alternatives to virgin polyester that we can scale.
Beginning with design
As we strive to build our products more responsibly and efficiently, our design and development teams continue to invest in and expand the integration of 3D design and modeling tools. These advanced tools allow the teams to virtually review products on digital avatars with exceptional detail and make immediate pattern adjustments and, in many cases, replace the need to make a physical sample. Additionally, 3D design and modeling help the teams make quicker design decisions, collaborate more efficiently, reach faster approvals, and improve our ability to meet both customer and market demands. By reducing our reliance on physical samples and traditional development processes, we aim to reduce our raw material, resource consumption, and our overall volume of textile waste in development.
Product safety and chemical compliance
We regularly evaluate and restrict the use of potentially harmful chemicals in our apparel. In addition to implementing testing protocols, we actively monitor relevant legislation and regulatory developments worldwide to ensure compliance and alignment with best practices. By staying informed about emerging requirements, we are well-positioned to take necessary measures proactively, safeguarding our operations and supporting our sustainability goals. This includes developing action plans to replace ingredients of concern with alternatives that are safer for people and the environment.
Thanks to our vertical integration, we formulate most of the recipes used in our dyeing operations in-house. This allows us to better select raw materials and gives us a deep understanding of the chemicals we use.
Our Health and Safety team oversees chemical safety while our Environment team oversees chemical compliance as part of our Environmental Management System (EMS). Our Restricted Substances Code of Practice (RSCP) sets stringent standards and guidelines that our suppliers of raw materials and third-party manufacturing contractors are required to fulfill to help ensure that no restricted substances are used in the manufacturing of Gildan products at any point in the supply chain.
We review, update, and align our RSCP with industry-leading standards; it covers all regulated and targeted substances in the textile industry and their potential impact on human health and the environment.
We require our suppliers to submit data and conduct targeted testing for restricted substances in their materials on a risk-prioritized basis. If we identify a violation to our RSCP, we apply a corrective action plan for our third-party suppliers, which can include penalties up to termination of the agreement.
STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®
Gildan®, American Apparel®, Comfort Colors®, GOLDTOE®, and Peds® products are certified by the internationally recognized STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®. This external standard allows manufacturers and consumers to objectively assess the presence of harmful substances in textiles and apparel products based on approximately 100 human and ecological performance-related test parameters. Achieving the STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® requires meeting strict standards, including demonstrating the absence of restricted chemicals through an annual independent validation by an accredited laboratory.
Waste management
We are focused on minimizing waste in how we source, manufacture, and package our apparel. To do this, we are collaborating with customers, suppliers, and NGOs to move towards a more circular model that will help keep waste out of landfills. As much as possible, we try to reduce, reuse, or recycle our waste directly within our vertically integrated supply chain.
Our Global Environment & Energy Policy and our EMS include policies and procedures for waste classification, acceptable measures for handling specific waste, site-specific information, and documentation and reporting processes covering non-hazardous, hazardous, biomedical, and special waste (e.g., electronic waste and glass).
In addition, the fact that we own the vast majority of our supply chain gives us oversight to help reduce waste in places that present opportunities. In this regard, our supply chain ownership allows us to use some of the in-process waste from one production process as input into other products.
Shipping and packaging
We invest in research, development, and collaborations to reduce the volume and/or weight of packaging, while still delivering quality products to our customers. This includes:
Increasing reusable packaging and packaging incorporating recycled material
Increasing the amount of certified and/or verified recyclable packaging and seeking other alternative options
Phasing out single-use plastic packaging over time
We continually work with suppliers to reduce packaging volume and to return materials and containers for reuse and repurposing. Additionally, we use pallets to transport yarns which, when empty, are returned to our yarn operations for reuse.
We are also reducing the amount of plastic stretch film used to wrap and protect our products from damage during delivery. We are accomplishing this by installing sensors in our wrapper machines, which detect the size of packaging and optimize the amount of wrap used.
