In its ongoing push to deliver safer, healthier and more sustainable products to its customers, Ultrafabrics has announced that it has removed any and all PFAS and PFOA’s from the bulk of its textile offerings. Additionally, the textile manufacturer was awarded ‘achiever’ status from MindClick’s Sustainability Assessment Program (MSAP).
A resource for architects, designers and specifiers, Mindclick is a resource that allows users to quickly assess the sustainability credentials of brands and their offerings in the marketplace, with the MSAP measuring all aspects of a brand’s ESG strategy from materials, chemicals, packaging, health and end-of-use to determine a brand’s ranking.
“In the spirit of an authentic and honest sustainability journey, we are pleased to share our exciting updates about our portfolio and PFAS/PFOA, as well as recently receiving the Achiever Rating in MindClick’s Sustainability Assessment Program,” stated Nicole Meier, director of branding at Ultrafabrics.
“We want to empower our partners with the best products and information to make their design process successful.”
Majority of the Portfolio Is PFAS/PFOA-free
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, better known as PFAS, are synthetic chemical compounds typically used for water and stain resistance. Studies have recently linked PFAS, which includes compounds like PFOA and PFOS, with a range of harmful effects on both human and environmental health.
Known as ‘forever-chemicals,’ these types of compounds do not break down in nature and bioaccumulate within organisms over time, leading to these adverse effects as time goes on. As a result, many states and countries, including Japan, Ultrafabrics’ manufacturing headquarters, have adopted a ban on PFOA following the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs).
Ultrafabrics first began transitioning away from PFOA over two years ago and has since removed it from all Breathable Technology styles, which include Brisa (shown above), Brisa Distressed, Brisa Frontier, Brisa Forecast and Fresco. As a result, most of these styles to now comply with Health Care Without Harm’s Healthy Interiors Safer Chemical Challenge.
While a handful of Ultrafabrics collections still include PFAS—these being Ultraleather Pro, Reef Pro and select custom collections—the company has stated it is already working on removing PFAS from these offerings as well. This is not to take away from the larger scope of the achievement, that being that the overwhelming majority of the portfolio is now PFAS and PFOA free.
