Sustainability & Recycling
Why are down duvets and feather pillows so sustainable compared to synthetic bedding? How do I dispose of worn out bedding and what happens to it?
Down duvets: Sustainability & Recycling
Sustainability is an increasingly important topic for bedding, too. Consumers want duvets and pillows that impact our environment as little as possible. But just how sustainable and ecological are down duvets and feather pillows?
A study by the independent organisation Long Train Sustainability, which compared the life cycle of down and synthetic fillings (polyester) answers this question. The result is clear: Down products are up to 33 times more sustainable than synthetic ones.
How sustainable and ecological are down duvets?
The study carefully examined the raw materials and production process used in the fillings and investigated their impact on various sustainability factors:
- Climate change
- Natural resources
- Ecosystems
- Human health
- Energy consumption
The result: The environmental impact, in other words, the ecological footprint, of down is 85% to 97% lower than that of synthetically produced fillings:
What makes down duvets sustainable?
The study leaves no room for doubt: People who attach importance to eco-friendly and green materials choose down duvets. But what makes down products so sustainable?
The answer is simple: Down and feathers are natural materials occurring as a bi-product of meat product. Pre-existing raw materials are thus re-purposed.
This is not only sustainable, but also animal-friendly. Indeed, the member of the Swiss Bedding Manufacturers' Association committed years ago to refrain from using down and feathers from live plucking. In addition, down duvets and feather pillows can be disposed of ecologically.
Down duvets and recycling
As seen above, down is, strictly speaking, already a recycled raw material. But how do I dispose of discarded down duvets or feather pillows properly and what happens to them afterwards?
In contrast to synthetic or natural hair bedding, down duvets and feather pillows can be put in a clean plastic bag and placed in most standard collection containers or left outside on the next collection day for recycling. The filling is then hygienically processed and re-purposed, for example, for use in winter jackets or sleeping bags.
Down and feathers which are no longer suitable for reuse are composted. As a natural product, they are biodegradable. By the way, using recycled down for bedding does not yet make much sense for two reasons: for quality reasons on the one hand and because there is simply not enough suitable recycled material available on the other hand.