Our responsibility

We are aware of our responsibility to the places we love. Here in the Swiss Alps, we feel the impact of the climate crisis in real time. That's why we systematically assess the impact of our designs and manufacturing processes on the environment and people. We have a long-term vision, but we must take swift action to be more environmentally friendly. Looking ahead, our strategy is based on three core concepts: quality-driven product design, a revolution in production, and specific measures to mitigate climate change.

How we design our products

When we design our products, we focus on quality and innovation to reduce environmental impact. The goal: to create items durable enough for outdoor activities for a (very) long time by adopting a more circular approach.

Production

The revolution is underway. Manufacturing equipment to continue doing what we have always done in the mountains, cleaner and smarter.

Materials

To reduce our carbon footprint and improve our practices, we are focusing on researching alternative materials. To measure our progress, we work with several independent organizations that provide best practice guides and conduct checks and audits. Find out more about the use of new materials and achieving our goals below.

Recycled polyester

For nearly half a century, almost all mountain sports equipment has been made from virgin plastic. These fibers have one advantage: they offer sufficient performance to produce durable outdoor gear. But they also have one major drawback: they are derived from fossil fuels. To reduce our footprint, we are now avoiding the use of virgin plastics like polyester. According to estimates*, recycled polyester (rPET) saves 45% of fossil fuels and 26% of greenhouse gas emissions compared to virgin fibers. By 2025, all our polyester products will use 95% rPET to further the transition to a circular supply chain. *These estimates were calculated using the Higg MSI 3.7 model by Mammut Sports Group AG and have not been verified by a third party.

Microfibers

Primarily made from synthetic materials, our high-performance clothing and equipment are affected by microfiber degradation. Tiny plastic fragments, called microfibers, can detach from synthetic garments and pollute waterways. Due to their extremely small size, they are very difficult to retrieve. They are used to produce sports equipment because of their durability, but the downside is that they also persist for a very long time in aquatic environments. To address this issue, we joined The Microfibre Consortium (TMC) in 2017. This working group aims to reduce microfiber degradation and prevent water pollution by improving textile design and implementing water filtration systems.

Organic cotton

Traditional cotton farming requires enormous amounts of water and electricity. Organic cotton is grown without synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, or genetically modified (GMO) seeds, promoting natural soil regeneration and biodiversity. We began using organic cotton in 2009. By summer 2024, 88% of the cotton used in our textile collection was organic, including 100% GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified cotton. Our goal is to reach 100% organic cotton by 2025.

The down

The Responsible Down Standard (RDS) certification is an independent certification that guarantees wool comes from farms respecting the five freedoms of the animal and practicing advanced land management methods, thus protecting soil health, biodiversity, and native species. 84% of our wool garments in the Autumn/Winter (AW) 2024/2025 collection and 100% of those in the Spring/Summer 2024 collection were made from RWS-certified wool, which includes mulesing-free certification. According to our suppliers, the remaining uncertified virgin wool for the AW 2024/2025 collection was also mulesing-free.

Wool

Leather

We use leather for its performance and durability, but all the hides we use are by-products of the meat industry. The tanning process can also have a significant impact on workers and the environment. We work with certified leather whenever possible. For the nubuck leather in our shoes, we use terracare®, one of Germany's leading specialists in high-performance leather. terracare® uses production methods that save 30% on CO₂ emissions and 40% on water compared to industry averages. This average is determined by tanneries also certified by the Leather Working Group, suggesting that terracare® could have a significantly lower impact than its competitors in the sector.

Cleaner processes

As manufacturers, we must continually analyze how we create our products and assess the impact our processes have on the world around us.

bluesign®

The bluesign® SYSTEM specializes in safer and more sustainable textile production processes to improve the health and safety of workers and consumers while ensuring responsible resource use. Our partnership with bluesign® dates back to 2011. Together, we are constantly improving our practices. A bluesign® PRODUCT is made with at least 90% bluesign® APPROVED textiles and 30% bluesign® APPROVED fasteners and embellishments.

For our Autumn/Winter 2024/2025 collection, 62% of our clothing, 95% of our sleeping bags, 80% of our harnesses, and 100% of our ropes were bluesign® certified products. 91% of our backpacks and bags were made from bluesign® approved textiles. We aim to reach 90% bluesign® certified products and bluesign® approved fabrics in our collections by 2025.

Better management of chemicals

Some textile products require chemical treatment for dyeing or waterproofing. However, these chemicals pose a risk to workers, the environment, and our customers if not handled correctly. Therefore, our textiles, leathers, and accessories undergo testing to identify any illegal and/or hazardous substances they may contain, as outlined in our Undesirable Substances List (USL). Our USL often exceeds legal requirements and is based on the bluesign® System Substances List (BSSL). It applies to all our clothing, footwear, and equipment.

Fluorocarbons

Perfluorinated compounds, or fluorocarbons (PFCs), are a family of chemicals used in outdoor clothing and other industries to waterproof products and protect them from stains. However, fluorocarbons are not biodegradable and are easily transported by water and wind. Traces of them have been found all over the world, from Everest Base Camp to human blood. The use of fluorocarbons is one of the biggest challenges facing the outdoor industry. Since 2016, we have been moving towards PFC-free alternatives and have set ourselves the goal of eliminating all fluorocarbons from our products by 2025. For our Fall/Winter 2024/2025 collection, 88% of our clothing, 87% of our accessories, 100% of our sleeping bags, and 100% of our backpacks, bags, and climbing harnesses were guaranteed PFC-free.

Solution dye

For some synthetic fabrics, we now use a solution-dyeing method. According to third-party verified data from e.dye®, compared to traditional piece-dyed fabrics, solution-dyed fabrics reduce water consumption by up to 85%, chemical use by up to 90%, and CO2 emissions by up to 12% during production. The potential of this technique to reduce impact and increase product sustainability motivates us to expand its use in the coming years.

An ethical production

We want to promote traceability and transparency throughout our supply chain. Dangerous working conditions and indecent wages in the garment and consumer goods manufacturing industry are major drivers of social injustice, disproportionately affecting women working in factories. To improve working conditions across our supply chain, we maintain close relationships with our suppliers, focus on respecting human rights, and are regularly audited by independent auditing bodies, such as the Fair Wear Foundation.

Fair Wear

Fair Wear is committed to ensuring fair and safe working conditions in textile factories. This independent auditing association verifies production conditions within member companies and their Tier 1 suppliers. It encourages building connections between brands, factories, and workers. As a Fair Wear member, Mammut and its suppliers must adhere to the eight principles of the Fair Wear Labour Code:

1. Refusal of forced labor

2. Freedom of association and unionization

3. Absence of discrimination in hiring

4. Rejection of child labor

5. Payment of a living wage

6. Reasonable working hours

7. Safe and healthy working conditions

8. Contractual employment relationship

Fair Wear also offers training to workers and managers in textile companies, striving to restore balance and reduce the inequalities that have plagued the industry for decades. In some countries, additional training modules are offered, such as age verification during recruitment and harassment prevention. In 2023, 97.4% of our supply chain was audited to ensure compliance with Fair Wear principles.

A brand performance review is conducted annually to verify our procedures, activities, and reports, and the results are published. In 2024, our ranking remained good.

Our energy consumption

Electricity

Our headquarters in Switzerland is powered exclusively by hydropower, a renewable energy source. Since 2021, our shops and warehouse in Germany have also been powered entirely by renewable electricity. In 2022, we installed solar panels at our German subsidiary and warehouse, with an expected capacity of over one million kWh per year, enabling these buildings to achieve an estimated 45% energy self-sufficiency. 60% of the total electricity produced will be surplus and fed back into the grid. We plan to begin feeding this surplus into the grid by the third quarter of 2025.

Our energy efficiency improvement measures

In 2015, our headquarters joined the Swiss Energy Agency's program for the private sector, which publishes annual CO₂ emissions and energy efficiency targets, along with recommendations for achieving them. Since then, we have saved 218,266 kWh by replacing light bulbs and old heat pumps and improving the thermal insulation of our pipes.

Respect for animal welfare

We use certain natural materials such as merino wool, down, and leather in some products like sleeping bags, hiking boots, and clothing because they deliver the performance we demand from our products. But using animal-derived products comes with a great responsibility. We are committed to improving animal welfare and work exclusively with farms that have responsible practices. In order to achieve complete transparency throughout our supply chain, we have committed to:

1. Not using fur, hides, or other animal-derived materials from exotic or endangered species.

2. We are committed to using only certified wool, down, and leather from domesticated livestock, ensuring that these materials come from animals raised responsibly and ethically.

3. Requiring all our suppliers of animal-derived products to adhere to the strictest international standards for the raising, transport, and slaughter of live animals.

Further information regarding the materials we use is presented in the "Materials" section of this page.

Logistics and packaging

From transporting products from suppliers' premises to packaging each product sent to the end buyer: every step in our supply chain is carefully evaluated to reduce our impact as much as possible.

The packaging

The impact and role of packaging are sometimes misunderstood. Plastic bags and cardboard boxes protect goods during transport from the factories where they are produced to ports, logistics centers, and stores. Packaging materials do have an impact on the environment, but the carbon footprint of products irreparably damaged during transport is far greater. We joined the European Outdoor Group's Single Use Plastic Project in 2021. Since then, we have modified our packaging to reduce our environmental impact.

All our cardboard packaging is now made from 100% recycled materials and is fully recyclable, with no unnecessary coatings or problematic finishes. To reduce overproduction and waste, we use more universal packaging and labels. In addition, we have reduced the size of individual packages. Finally, plastics and plastic films have been completely eliminated wherever possible.

Transportation

Transportation represents a significant portion of our total environmental impact. Most of our goods are transported by ship or truck, but we are sometimes forced to use air freight, which contributes disproportionately to our total transport-related emissions. In 2024, we shipped 9% of our goods by air, based on business needs, accounting for over 79% of our total upstream transport emissions.

By improving our production planning and communication with our logistics partners, we are doing everything we can to avoid having to use last-minute air freight to meet our delivery deadlines.

Our commitment to the community

Mountains have the power to transform lives and create meaningful connections.

Mammut's responsibilities

We are aware of our responsibility to the places we love. Discover our goals and the steps we are taking to reduce the impact of our manufacturing and operations in these reports.

Testimonials

At Mammut, we believe that our experiences in the mountains help us grow, strengthen us physically and mentally, encourage us to find more responsible ways of living, and teach us respect and humility. Immerse yourself in our favorite stories.