Impact Report

How Sustainable Is Allbirds?

Founded in 2016 in New Zealand by Tim Brown and Joey Zwillinger, Allbirds is a footwear and apparel brand renowned for its sustainable materials.

Allbirds places sustainability at the core of its business, shifting from virgin synthetics to preferred alternatives and targeting near-zero carbon emissions by 2030. It also leads efforts in social sustainability, disclosing extensive details about its supply chain factories.

1. Environmental
Sustainability

Allbirds drives environmental sustainability with its use of preferred materials and near and long-term climate goals, aiming to cut emissions in nearly half by 2030.
IMPACT AREA 01

Materials
& Sourcing

  1. The raw material composition in all of Allbird’s products is fully transparent and available online.
  2. Allbirds uses a significant share of preferred materials in its collections, including organic cotton, TENCEL Lyocell, and recycled polyester as some of its most-used fibers.
  3. While Allbirds has made significant strides in replacing virgin synthetic fibers with sustainable alternatives, they have not publicly disclosed a comprehensive material portfolio or specific targets for fully eliminating virgin synthetic fibers.
  4. Packaging comprises 90% recycled cardboard and the brand is committed to switching to 100% recycled content.
IMPACT AREA 02

Climate
& Emissions

  1. Allbirds' annual emissions totaled 21,453 tCO2e in 2023, with 96.6% classified as Scope 3.
  2. Allbirds is certified by The Climate Label (formerly Climate Neutral) and has set two near-term emissions reduction targets validated by the label to eliminate Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions by 42% by 2030 based on its 2020 baseline.
  3. Allbirds prioritizes ocean shipping over air freight to reduce transportation emissions, as outlined in their carbon footprint methodology document.
  4. Allbirds discloses the carbon footprint of most of the individual items in their collections, helping consumers make more informed decisions regarding the carbon impact of their purchases.
IMPACT AREA 03

Water
& Chemicals

  1. Allbirds partners with its suppliers to evaluate and manage water usage, aiming to reduce consumption and foster efficiency throughout production. However, supplier-level water and chemical management data are not disclosed in its public list of factories.
  2. Every supplier delivering finished goods, components, and raw materials to Allbirds must ensure that all products meet the latest restrictions set by the AFIRM Restricted Substances List (RSL).
  3. Suppliers must maintain a comprehensive chemical inventory with current safety data sheets (SDS) while ensuring employees are trained on chemical hazards, proper handling, and emergency protocols.
IMPACT AREA 04

Circularity
& Waste

  1. Allbirds uses a significant share of recycled fabrics in its collections, with recycled polyester forming a majority.
  2. It uses a significant share of plastic-based materials that run the risk of shredding microplastics into the environment through washing.
  3. Allbirds prohibits the disposal of unsold items and partners with Soles4Souls to upcycle lightly used or returned shoes.
  4. It runs a resale program called ReRun aimed at extending the lifecycle of pre-owned products and improving circularity.

2. Social
Sustainability

Allbirds drives social sustainability with a nearly vegan material portfolio, robust human rights policies and a transparent supply chain.
IMPACT AREA 05

Animal
Welfare

  1. Allbirds is not a vegan brand and uses animal-based materials in its products, including wool. All of its wool is ZQ-certified merino wool.
  2. Allbirds does not use other animal-based materials like leather, exotic skins, fur, and angora in its products.
  3. Allbirds has a publicly available Animal Welfare Policy aligned with The Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare.
IMPACT AREA 06

Workplace
Practices

  1. In May 2023, Allbirds laid off 21 of its employees, offering an undisclosed severance package to affected employees.
  2. It scored a slightly above-median 21.1 out of 40 in the "Workers" category of its 2020 B Corp Impact Assessment, which evaluates its support for employees’ financial security, career development, workplace conditions, and culture.

  3. Allbirds offers its employees comprehensive voluntary benefits, including wellness stipends, enhanced parental leave, and 401k matching, exceeding California's legal minimums.

  4. No information is available regarding third-party certifications or external audits of its internal workplace practices​. 

IMPACT AREA 07

Supply Chain
Workers’ Rights

  1. Allbirds' supplier code of conduct is publicly available and complies with international labor standards, addressing issues such as child labor, forced labor, discrimination, fair wages, working hours, and workplace safety.
  2. Its publicly available Human Rights Policy outlines the responsibilities and impacts on both suppliers and their employees or contractors.
  3. Allbirds publishes a public list of factories it works with, disclosing the parent company, address, country, types of goods manufactured, employee numbers, female employee numbers, foreign migrant worker numbers, collective bargaining, and social compliance audit dates.
•••

Sources

  1. Allbirds SUPPLIER CODE OF CONDUCT
  2. ESG overview
  3. Sustainable practices
  4. How we operate
  5. Carbon footprint
  6. Regenerative agriculture
  7. Renewable materials
  8. Our materials tree 
  9. Carbon offsets
  10. ALLBIRDS PRODUCT CARBON FOOTPRINT METHODOLOGY  
  11. Responsible energy   
  12. ReRun
  13. FAQs page
  14. Giving Mother Nature a Seat at the Table
  15. Allbirds Sustainability Report
  16. Allbirds Disclosure Report 2023 
  17. Allbirds Transparent Assessment 2023  
  18. https://explore.changeclimate.org/brand/allbirds 
  19. Allbirds Published Factory List 2024