Most of us who love wild places also love wildlife (not to mention their domestic cousins). Which leads us to wonder about the choices we make as creature-conscious consumers of outdoor goods.
Not surprisingly, many companies appeal to people's good intentions by labeling products with words that sound nice, but sometimes lack rigorous criteria and monitoring: "animal friendly," "humanely raised" and "sustainably farmed" are just three examples of popular, yet slightly vague, claims.
If you want to be sure that the outdoor gear and clothing you're buying truly address animal welfare concerns, it makes sense to educate yourself about some key animal welfare standards, what they mean and how to shop for products that employ them. When you shop on REI.com, you will often have the option of selecting one of the following animal welfare attributes:
- Responsible Down Standard (RDS)
- Responsible Wool Standard (RWS)
- Ratings from the Leather Working Group (LWG)
Understanding Animal Welfare Standards
Credible labels typically have the following characteristics:
- Transparent, rigidly defined and widely agreed upon standards that meet consumer expectations
- A regulating or certifying entity, which could be a government agency or a recognized third-party authority
The Responsible Down Standard, Responsible Wool Standard and Leather Working Group certifications are rigorous animal-related standards that have emerged from collaborative efforts across the outdoor industry.
As a lover of both animals and gear, your savvy approach is to look for labels like these—ones that are indeed legit because they meet the above criteria.
Responsible Down Standard (RDS)
The RDS label certifies that the down and feathers in products like sleeping bags and outerwear came from ducks and geese that were treated well. While down is a byproduct of the food industry, this standard bans cruel practices, like live plucking and force feeding.
RDS certification also requires that ducks and geese are cared for according to the five freedoms of animal welfare:
- Freedom from hunger and thirst
- Freedom from discomfort
- Freedom from pain, injury or disease
- Freedom to express normal behavior
- Freedom from fear and distress
For more details, visit Responsible Down Standard.
Shop Responsibly Sourced Down Products at REI
Responsible Wool Standard (RWS)
The RWS label certifies that wool comes from sheep that are raised in accordance with the five freedoms of animal welfare (listed above in the Responsible Down Standard section). In addition, RWS certification specifically bans mulesing, a painful practice intended to ward off parasites.
RWS also looks at the land where the sheep are raised, requiring farmers to manage it in a way that promotes ecological health.
For more details, visit Responsible Wool Standard.
ZQ is another certification relating to responsible wool production. It adheres to comparable standards as RWS certification, so brands can (legitimately) market ZQ-designated wool as "RWS Certified." Brands must, of course, confirm they meet all requirements of the RWS before doing so.
Recycled Down and Wool
Increasingly, brands are using recycled down and wool in their products, reducing the industry's reliance on virgin sources of those materials to make gear and apparel. That not only reduces impacts on animals, but also reduces climate impacts as well because animal husbandry can often be carbon-intensive.
Leather Working Group (LWG) Standard
The LWG rating evaluates the leather supplier's environmental stewardship practices and promotes traceability of leather hides. Traceability is important because hides originating from certain regions—such as the Amazon—can contribute to deforestation when forestland is cleared to graze cattle. Suppliers are rated as "Gold," "Silver," "Bronze," or "Pass," based on their score following an audit.
Note: LWG ratings apply only to the leather component of a product, not the entire product. In addition, auditors don't examine how animals that provide leather are treated, so you shouldn't look to it for guidance about humane animal welfare practices.
For more details, visit Leather Working Group.
Gear Made with LWG Certified Leather
Vegetarian and Vegan Products
At REI, these well-established labels apply to backpacking and camping food. You can select these attributes on REI.com when you shop for vegan food or other products that don't contain animal-derived materials like vegan hiking shoes or vegan trail-running shoes. You can also look for it to be noted in product descriptions and on packaging. In addition, you can search for footwear products that are "vegan" because they contain no animal products (no leather), nor glues that contain animal products.
Finding Products that Meet Animal Welfare Standards
Transitioning to gear that meets these standards takes time, and companies are still fine-tuning how to share with their customers which products meet which standards. The most reliable way to know whether a product has the certification you want is to look for official logos and product descriptions that mention it. Those indicators should be on hangtags on products in stores and in product descriptions online and in catalogs and flyers.
REI Co-op Products
- RDS certification: REI Co-op has adopted the Responsible Down Standard for 100% of virgin down and feathers that are used in REI Co-op brand products like jackets and sleeping bags.
- RWS certification: REI is committed to sourcing virgin wool from farms where sheep are treated according to leading animal welfare standards, and where land is responsibly managed. We prefer wool certified to the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS), a certification that provides additional assurance that farmers follow best practices for animal husbandry and sustainable land management.
- LWG certification: While REI does not source full-leather hides, when we do use leather, we prioritize suppliers rated by the Leather Working Group
Products from Other Outdoor Brands
REI is encouraging the adoption of these standards by the brands we select to offer to our members. In addition, many brands we carry were key partners in developing these standards. So, while you need to look for telltale logos and details in gear and clothing descriptions, you will find it on an ever-increasing number of products online and in stores.
REI Product Impact Standards
REI has established the REI Product Impact Standards, which apply to all brands and products sold at the co-op. These standards outline our expectations of all brands sold at REI regarding how key environmental, social and animal welfare impacts are managed. The standards also identify preferred attributes—the most credible, relevant and impactful features that support positive impacts across our product offering. We encourage brand partners to use for their products, including standards covered in this article. Look for products with these features while shopping at REI to help support better ways of making gear.
Related Articles:
To learn about all of REI Co-op's sustainability initiatives, read our online REI Co-op Impact Report.
