ENVIRONMENTALLY DECLARED
CLOTHING

REDUCE YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT.

It is now possible to wear environmentally declared (EPD) workwear every day, all year. Fristads Green is the world's first environmentally declared clothing collection, characterized by environmentally friendly thinking and innovative solutions to ensure minimal impact on the environment.

The entire production is based on environmental thinking and innovative solutions that provide the smallest possible environmental footprint.

Fristads Green is distributed by Kansas A/S.

The world’s first environmentally declared clothing collection

In the autumn of 2019, Fristads did something nobody had done before. We launched the world’s first environmentally declared clothing collection, Fristads Green. What makes Fristads Green unique is that all garments have been produced with sustainability in mind, from the design and choice of materials to the delivery of the finished product to our warehouse. The environmental impact of each garment in Fristads Green is also analysed using a standardised tool called an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD).

So far, we have launched Fristads Green collections for craftsmen and service and industry, and in the coming years we will launch environmentally declared garments in all product categories. Thanks to this new standard, we can reduce our footprint on the planet and contribute to real, lasting change in the clothing industry. And we are challenging others to follow our lead.

What is an Environmental Product Declaration and why does it matter?

It is easy to say that a product is produced in a sustainable way, but the claim falls flat unless you have cold, hard facts to back it up. Our current Fristads Green products come with a third-party approved Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) that details the material contents, water usage, energy consumption, climate impact and waste produced during the making and transportation of the garment. The certification is based on ISO 14025 and is controlled and verified according to the requirements of the International EPD® System.

We developed the EPD with the help of the governmental research institute RISE to increase the transparency of clothing production. We also wanted to give the textile industry a standardised tool that can measure the environmental impact of a garment in a meaningful and objective way. Naturally, our goal is to make our own clothes more sustainable, but also to increase awareness among manufacturers, supply managers and end users. Together, we can make better choices and change the ways of the clothing industry.

Green design and materials

Developing a sustainable clothing collection starts in the design room. In the Fristads Green collection, every seam and detail is carefully designed to save energy and minimise waste during the production, then paired with materials that have a lower environmental impact than their traditional counterparts. Fristads Green garments are made of organic cotton, recycled polyester and TENCEL® Lyocell, a wood fibre that comes from traceable sources.  

The polyester is certified according to the Global Recycled Standard and made of 100% recycled PET bottles. Using mechanically recycled polyester cuts the energy consumption by 45% compared with virgin polyester and TENCEL® Lyocell uses 95% less water during production compared with cotton. The organic cotton in the Fristads Green garments is undyed to conserve water and the polyester is dyed using a colouring system called e.dye®. In this innovative process, the dye is added to the raw material before it becomes yarn, which cuts the water consumption by 75% compared with traditional dyeing.

What’s next for Fristads Green?

Our environmentally declared Fristads Green collection has blazed new trails in an industry in great need of change. In 2019, the collection won the prestigious Red Dot Award for best design concept and the feedback from our customers has been overwhelmingly positive. We have learned a lot in the process. While developing the EPD we had to challenge ourselves to find a more sustainable design process, raw materials and production, and analyse the environmental impact of every step of the supply chain. The insights we gained from the project are already helping us improve the way we manufacture our clothes and reduce our environmental footprint. But our work is far from done.  

More sustainable workwear from Fristads is in the pipeline. Our goal is to produce every garment in a way that minimises the effect on the environment. Eventually, we would like to close the loop on our production completely, by taking care of the garments after they have reached the end of their lives. We are not there yet, but we are working on it.