Earth, meet Polo: Ralph Lauren drops plastic bottle shirt

NEW YORK —
Earth, meet polo.
On Thursday, Polo Ralph Lauren introduced a signature Polo shirt, made entirely of recycled plastic bottles and dyed with zero water.
David Lauren, the company\'s founder and youngest son of chief innovation officer, told The Associated Press before the announcement that the new shirt is part of a broader strategy for new environmental goals throughout the manufacturing process.
\"We are learning about global warming every day and what\'s happening around the world,\" Lauren said. \"our employees and customers really feel that it\'s time to come forward and change . \".
Polo is not the first.
Small brands around the world are using recycled and recycled materials.
In announcing Earth polo, Ralph Lauren promised to remove at least 0. 17 billion bottles from landfill sites and oceans by 2025.
The shirts were made in Taiwan, where bottles were collected.
Average 12 bottles per bottle.
Shirts are produced in collaboration with First Mile, an organization that collects bottles into yarn and eventually into fabrics.
The new fiber will also be used for existing performance wear that has been made from polyester fiber, which is popular for being able to absorb moisture.
Globe polo was sold in ralph Lauren on Thursday before Earth Day on Monday.
Com and retail stores around the world.
It has a male and female style of green, white, navy and light blue.
Shirts are no more expensive than other polos.
Ralph Lauren has been taking environmental initiatives for years, but it is implementing a more important strategy aimed at changing its corporate culture and its perception of the clothing it produces.
Halide Alagoz, a new supply chain and sustainability official, said more details would be released on June.
\"At the moment, we are updating our approach and framework on sustainability,\" she said . \".
Other objectives of the company include the use of 100% sustainable sources of cotton by 2025, and the use of 100% recyclable or sustainable sources of packaging materials in the same year.
Other fashion giants are also increasingly active in the environment.
At the end of last year, Burberry and H & M were among fashion stakeholders who signed the fashion industry Climate Action Charter, launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in COP24, Poland.
The charter contains a vision for the realization of the network
Zero emissions by 2050.
Ralph Lauren is not a signatory but is exploring a call to action.
For Earth Polo, the big threats facing the ocean today include trillions of tiny plastics and chemicals. covered non-
Plastic microfibers flowing out of the washing machine are drained, putting smaller fish and other marine life (such as sea anemones) at risk.
Alagoz says Ralph Lauren is working with experts who say the impact of turning plastic bottles into recycled microfibers is \"much smaller than the bottles that end up in the ocean.
The broader problem of the biodegradable capacity of this fiber remains unresolved.
For Polo Earth, the story is about recycling and reuse, says Lauren.
\"There are too many things in the world that are not conducive to the environment.
\"No matter what material we turn into clues, we will start looking for other opportunities,\" he said . \".
\"Right now, we are working to make sure that the products we produce are as good as possible for the environment, or at least help solve another problem.
I think we are creating a solution or at least trying to find a solution.