Polartec®, Norrøna Partner with REPREVE® to Create First-of-its-Kind 100-Percent Recycled Garment (Lawrence, Mass.)

Polartec partner brand Norrøna announces the release of the 100-percent recycled men’s and women’s /29 warm4 up-cycled Jackets, built of Polartec® Wind Pro® fleece made entirely of REPREVE® 100 yarn. Polartec uses REPREVE 100 yarn from Unifi for over 50 percent of its domestic production, and for the 29 warm4 up-cycled Jacket. The REPREVE yarn was made from recycled bottles collected in Norrøna's home country, Norway. These bottles were collected in collaboration with Tomra and Norsk Resirk. About 40 plastic bottles were used to make each /29 warm4 up-cycled Jacket and Norrøna estimates that the production of each REPREVE based jacket uses 20-percent less energy than a virgin fleece, without sacrificing performance.

The particular recycled Polartec® Wind Pro® fabric features a high loft interior, providing increased warmth without weight. Polartec® Wind Pro® is four times more wind resistant than traditional fleece, highly breathable, durable, and water repellent, making the /29 up-cycled warm4 Jacket a very versatile product for the whole year.

“We are now launching our first sports garment made exclusively from returned bottles,” says Norrøna owner and chief executive Jørgen Jørgensen. “The goal is to recycle up the value chain, so that bottles can be turned into advanced sportswear.”

“For a long time, a fairly low proportion of recycled material was used; as little as 10 percent, says Chuck Haryslak of Polartec. “But after a while we were able to add more and more and can now make a fabric without adding fresh polyester and without a loss of quality.” “When Norrøna brought this idea to us, we were very excited about the opportunity to prove out the concept that we can provide our customers with custom recycling solutions,” said Mark McNeill, product development manager for Unifi. “With our unique capabilities at the REPREVE Recycling Center, we were able to offer Norrøna a REPREVE based product, made from bottles collected in their country with performance equal to virgin.” Norrona Magazine article on the up-cycling process.

About Polartec, LLC Polartec, LLC is the developer, manufacturer, and marketer of Polartec® performance fabrics. Polartec® products range from lightweight wicking base layers, to insulation layers, to extreme weather protection and are utilized by the best clothing brands in the world. For more information, visit polartec.com. REPREVE is a registered trademark of Unifi, Inc.