9 Sustainable Denim Brands you should know
Mudjeans is an award-winning and PETA approved Dutch jeans brand.
What is unique about them is that they have a "Lease a jeans" option which makes Mudjeans the respective owner of the jeans. That way the jeans that are no longer wanted can be exchanged for a new pair. On the other hand old jeans can be returned and will then be turned into a new pair. They ultimately aim to produce their jeans from 100% recycled cotton but meanwhile use a blend of recycled and organic cotton until they get there.
Kuyichi is another Dutch jeans label that strives for less harmful production and fairer working conditions. The jeans are all vegan and made from organic cotton, whereas part of it is made from recycled materials (recyled cotton and recyled polyester). In collaboration with By Sympany they also use so called Post-consumer recycled denim (PCRD) which revitalises old jeans by turning them into a new pair.
Armedangels is a German brand that regularly comes out with new jeans models. They've recently launched their DetoxDenim line where they subscribe to detox cotton (by using organic cotton), coloring as well as bleaching in an attempt to clean up the dirty denim business. By using organic cotton (detox denim) and gold level material health certified coloring as well as less harmful bleaching methods (with 85% less chemicals involved) their jeans protect environment' and worker's health.
Kings of Indigo is a brand based in Amsterdam. As the name already suggests they are passionate about (almost) everything Denim. Sandblasting, a technique used to created the distressed jeans look, is very harmful for the workers. Therefore, Kings of Indigo uses alternative methods to treat their jeans such as ice blast, ozone or lazer which also subsititutes harmful bleaching. Their objective is to clean up the dirty practices in the denim industry by providing a saver work environment for their workers.
Freitag is a Swiss label that originally got widespread fame for their bags made form recyled truck tarp. They expanded their field of work and came up with a material they call F-abric which is 100% biodegradable. F-abric is made from a mixture of hemp, linen and Modal which can all be grown in Europe. As their jeans are made from F-abric the outworn jeans can be simply composted.
Monkee Genes is an organic and ethical brand with a focus on jeans. They produce in a G.O.T.S certified factory in Indonesia with which they have been working with for the past ten years. Their mantra is ‘no slave labour, no child labour, no blood, no sweat, no tears’. Monkee Genes desists from using animal products which makes them a PETA approved brand.
Everlane is an American brand which also has a range of jeans on offer. They sell four different cuts: skinny, straight, kick crop and boyfriend in either mid- or high-rise. My personal favourite is the Cheeky Straight Jean that look like a vintage pair of mom-jeans. Everlane highly values transparency which is why they disclose an exact cost breakdown on their website while also providing customers with details to their production facilities.
Good Society is a Denim brand that fabricates jeans using organic cotton. The backpatch is vegan and most of the buttons and add-ons are made from recycled materials. They offer slim jeans, over high-rise jeans to straight jeans so there is something for everybody's taste. The jeans are produced and refined in Italy with minimal environmental impact.
Wunderwerk is a German online store that also has an offline store in Berlin. Over 90% of its production takes place in Europe under the maintenance of strict ethical guidelines. They are one of the marketleaders in the German Fair Fashion market and also offer a variety of jeans which are made from organic cotton.
