Conserving the Environment: A Look at Gildan's 2019 Sustainability Highlights

With the announcement of Gildan’s 2019 ESG report, the Company looks back on the progress it has made towards its goal of Conserving the Environment – the second of three pillars that lay the foundation to its Genuine Responsibility® program.

As one of the largest vertically-integrated apparel manufacturers in the world, Gildan takes its responsibility of conserving the environment seriously, which is why the Company continues to seek out opportunities to minimize its impacts. For over a decade, Gildan has been integrating sustainable solutions and innovative technologies across its supply chain, and as part of its environmental commitment, the Company embraces an ever-evolving approach to reducing its impacts which relies on consistent measuring, monitoring, and optimization of its manufacturing processes.

2019 Highlights

Last year, Gildan made further progress around integrating more energy-efficient technologies across its operations. One example of these technologies is the Company’s biomass steam generation system, which serves as a renewable source of energy that has allowed Gildan to replace some of its energy use with cleaner alternatives. In fact, 44% of the Company’s total energy consumption now comes from renewable energies.

Thanks to innovative solutions and processes, Gildan was also able to meet and exceed both of its 2020 reduction targets related to water use and GHG emissions. The Company made progress in 2019 with an 11.2% reduction in water intensity and a 10.5% reduction in GHG emissions compared to the previous year. In addition to this achievement, the Company also succeeded in recycling or repurposing 89% of its non-hazardous waste, making further headway on using materials more sustainably.

You can read the complete ESG report here to learn more about Gildan’s 2019 progress towards Conserving the Environment.