Happy Earth leads environmentally with its use of organic cotton and successful emissions reduction targets and socially with Fair Trade Certified production. Considering the brand's small size, it's setting high sustainability benchmarks.
1. Environmental
Sustainability
Happy Earth follows a slow fashion model with limited production. Its products primarily use organic cotton, a preferred material with environmental and socio-economic benefits to smallholders. The brand is certified by B Corp, and while it has fewer written policies than larger brands, sustainability is central to its operations.
IMPACT AREA 01
Materials
& Sourcing
- Raw material composition in all Happy Earth products is fully transparent and available online. It uses almost exclusively preferred materials in its products, with organic cotton as its most-used fiber.
- It uses a very low share of petroleum-based fibers like polyester and elastane.
- Happy Earth's product packaging is made with 100% recycled content.
- Product packaging for factory shipments to Happy Earth is made with 100% recycled content. Plastic waste is reduced by grouping items rather than individual polybagging.
- It has set targets for Q4 2025 to reduce plastic in shipping and eliminate single-use plastic from all packaging (Track progress).
IMPACT AREA 02
Climate
& Emissions
- Information about Happy Earth's annual emissions is publicly available, covering Scopes 1, 2, and 3. Its annual emissions totaled 656 tCO2e in 2023, with 99.8% classified as Scope 3 from its supply chain.
- Happy Earth is certified by The Climate Label (formerly Climate Neutral). It gives the brand climate accountability and ensures it measures and publicizes its emissions, implements reduction plans, and invests in verified climate projects.
- In 2023 and 2024, it completed two emission reduction plans covering supply chain energy use and shipping, reducing Scope 3 missions in its supply chain.
Its office runs on renewable energy, and its primary manufacturing partner in India uses 60-70% renewable energy and natural gas instead of diesel. - At checkout, customers can support carbon offsetting (150 lbs, or 68 kg, of CO2e per product) at no added cost. In total, it claims to have offset more than 7 million lb, or 3.2 million kg, of CO2e in emissions in the United States, Uganda, India, and China.
- Happy Earth uses a significant share of low carbon impact materials - materials that generate lower emissions than conventional production methods.
IMPACT AREA 03
Water
& Chemicals
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Happy Earth uses a significant share of materials that reduce water resource depletion compared to conventional production methods and a significant share of materials that reduce eutrophication, or excessive nutrient buildup in water bodies, compared to conventional production methods.
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Happy Earth's primary manufacturer in India utilizes water-saving methods like rain harvesting and wastewater recycling.
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Happy Earth uses a significant share of materials that reduce chemical exposure to workers, consumers, and the environment compared to conventional production methods.
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Happy Earth uses non-toxic dyes and claims that all its materials and processes avoid substances restricted by the voluntary ZDHC Manufacturing Restricted Substances List, surpassing standard chemical safety regulations.
IMPACT AREA 04
Circularity
& Waste
- It employs low-waste cutting methods to reduce fabric waste and is committed to a 50% reduction target in waste generated from offcuts by Q4 2025 (Track progress).
- At checkout, customers can support plastic waste cleanup efforts (1 lb, or 0.45 kg per product) at no added cost.
- Its policy forbids destroying unsold garments and opts to donate excess products locally, though details about this are not provided.
- Provides product care information to help extend the durability of its products.
- No clothing take-back, repair, or resale programs are implemented.
- Happy Earth uses a very low share of materials that release microplastics into the environment through washing.
