EverythingYou Need to Know About Buying Ethically Sourced Down Products. A growing number of brands are prioritizing the welfare of the birds that supply the feathers stuffed into items like jackets, comforters, and pillows.

Read more: https://www.audubon.org/news/everything-you-need-know-about-buying-ethically-sourced-down-products

At Outdoor Retailer show, Allied Feather and Down emerges as full-spectrum ambassador for integrity of nature, environmental conservation.

Read more: https://www.theutahreview.com/outdoor-retailer-show-allied-feather-emerges-full-spectrum-ambassador-integrity-nature-environmental-conservation/

Below-zero temperatures make backcountry skiing and camping in Utah’s Wasatch Range a cold but beautiful challenge.

Read more: https://www.menshealth.com/trending-news/a19541044/camping-backcountry-skiing-wasatch-range-utah-winter/

A down jacket is a definite essential to have when you live in a mountain town — or any place where snow can fall or drastic temperature drops can occur.

Read more: https://www.elevationoutdoors.com/gear/n-dirty-stio-hometown-hooded-jackets

Get Down: Expedition Portal Put Six Feather-filled Jackets to the Test

Read more: https://expeditionportal.com/get-down-we-put-six-feather-filled-jackets-to-the-test/

From intelligent drones to ‘levitating’ tents, the future of the outdoors industry is nothing if not unique.

Read more: https://gearjunkie.com/roundup/outdoor-gear-trends-2017

At the winter market 2016 edition of Outdoor Retailer, more than 1,000 brands showed the new products for Fall 2016. Here’s a recap.

Read more: https://www.gearpatrol.com/outdoors/a198535/best-of-outdoor-retailer-2016/

Revolutionary developments aimed at improving the enduring insulation we know as “down fill” are helping make traveling light and staying dry a lot easier.

Read more: https://gearography.com/get-up-on-down/

2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Giving the Gift of Adventure

Read more: https://www.gogumption.com/gear-reviews-2/2015-holiday-gift-guide/

There are records of down being traded as an insulation as far back as the early 1600s. And long before that, the down and feather waste of birds used for food was utilized to create warm and comfortable bedding. 

The modern down supply chain has historically been extremely opaque, consisting of a network of brokers who aggregated material from slaughterhouse groups and sold on an open market with almost no visibility to the farms the birds were raised on. 

More than 30 years ago, ALLIED was founded as an insulation company working directly with farms and slaughterhouse groups. As the outdoor industry was growing rapidly through the early 1980s, the need for a high-quality down fill — different than what was available at the time — became apparent. By working directly with farms around the world, ALLIED was able to control quality and provide these growing brands complete traceability and transparency long before it was considered an important issue – all with a new unparalleled performance that led directly to new types of down jackets. 

In 2012, ALLIED used this intimate knowledge throughout a supply chain many thought impossible to trace, and started work with The North Face to build what would become the Responsible Down Standard. Gifted to the Textile Exchange so that it could be utilized by the industry as a whole, this standard has now become one of the largest and most ubiquitous animal welfare standards in the textile and outdoor industries. 

ALLIED continues to change the industry by uncovering new supply chains, offering unique material and bringing traceability and education directly to the consumer for the first time. 

A new way to source direct over 30 years still remains a bit of a novelty. Much of the global down supply chain is still quite opaque, though the changes ALLIED has helped to introduce back then has changed the down industry forever.

While the industry-wide animal welfare standards are incredibly important to bring a level of assurance to consumers that the down inside a garment, pillow, comforter or sleeping bag has been sourced responsibly, there is a lot more complexity to down insulation than just where or how it was sourced. And even though the standards also ensure traceability, there is no real way through those alone for the consumer to really understand where the down inside their jacket came from – or what makes it unique..

For us, the standards are simply an insurance policy to now communicate some of the intricacies of the material to the end user. For far too long, the synthetic industry and animal welfare activists have been able to attack down and spread misinformation without the customer having any sort of outlet to learn more about the performance and sustainability value of responsibly sourced material. 

That’s why, in 2015, alongside the release of the first RDS certified products, ALLIED launched TrackMyDown.com. The site allows the consumer to use the lot number on the jacket to learn more about all the important elements of the down inside their jacket – from source to cleanliness to complete content analysis – educating the consumer on what fill power is, why cleanliness and processing are so important to performance,  and how these might reflect on the quality of the product in front of them.

In 2019, ALLIED engaged Nobal Technologies, a cutting edge retail smart mirror tech firm to work on a new concept to develop a retail engagement, education and traceability tool. 

ALLIED had developed a way to  optically tag down that could be read by a hand-held reader through the garment itself, without altering the quality of the material or sacrificing the finished product. This program was developed and piloted as a quality control product for a large partner brand to ensure the material they were expecting did, in fact, end up in their garments. With all the work being done in certifications, it’s not uncommon for that to fall apart at the manufacturing level – either through sheer accident, lack of thoroughly cleaning equipment between runs or something more nefarious. 

Taking consumer traceability and education to the next level, ALLIED engaged Nobal Technologies for the development of a smart mirror able to read the down inside a garment with an integrated reader that interacts with this proprietary treatment on the down. This allows the retail customer to interact with the down inside the jacket to learn more about the quality of the down, see where and how it was sourced and even tie into existing retail point of sales devices and inventory management systems allows the user to see similar products and even make purchases directly from the mirror itself. 

Working with an animal by-product, it has always been important to ALLIED that the welfare of all birds throughout the supply chains used were being raised according to best practices of animal husbandry to ensure that all ALLIED down was ethically and responsibly sourced. 

Long before any real discussion of animal welfare within the down supply chain, ALLIED was auditing supply chains with third party auditing bodies and implementing the strongest and most transparent traceability initiatives in the industry. And even when many down suppliers continue to supply “certified” down alongside that which comes from force fed birds, ALLIED made the commitment to not source from these supply chains at all and to ensure all birds within the ALLIED supply chain were treated in accordance with Brambell’s five freedoms of animal welfare.

We face very real challenges in parts of the supply chain with force feeding for the Foie Gras industry and live-plucking practices that can exist on the parent farms. This is why, even though ALLIED had been doing independent robust audits, we worked with The North Face and Control Union to help develop the Responsible Down Standard; gifted to Textile Exchange to be used by the industry as a whole upon completion in 2014. 

ALLIED continues to lead the industry by certifying 100% of our supply chain and working with many large brands and international fashion houses to build even more robust supply chain certifications and initiatives. 

In 2013, ALLIED set out with The North Face and Control Union to build a much-needed industry-wide standard. With as much auditing that was already being conducted throughout the ALLIED supply chain, there still was not a singular industry standard with the appropriate stakeholders from which to audit against. 

The RDS has the largest brands and global animal welfare groups as important contributing stakeholders and certifies that all birds come from farms that abide by the five freedoms of animal welfare throughout all aspects of their lives – including travel. The RDS also requires a level of traceability for those certified brands and is built upon the content claim standard. That ensures that any RDS labeled product has been audited and certified throughout the entire supply chain – from farms through manufacturing. 

In order to ensure that best practices from a sourcing and animal welfare perspective continue to move forward, ALLIED regularly works with Fier Voten (Four Paws) to understand some of the issues they see in the industry and how we can develop a strategy to rectify on an industry-wide level. 

We never simply rely on any standard, we make sure we audit all supply chains ourselves and relationships like this are invaluable to not only make sure best practices are being followed, but also constantly reconsidered to best protect the welfare of these animals. 

“ALLIED has shown true leadership and has proven that regardless of a suppliers’ size, if they want to be cruelty-free they can. We call on all suppliers to follow ALLIED’s example and fully exclude down feathers from force-fed or live-plucked animals from their supply.

FOUR PAWS has called for prohibiting parallel production at the supplier level since the inception of those standards. We applaud ALLIED Feather and Down for being the first major processor to concur and understand the importance of such a measure,” – Melanie Lary, Four Paws

Down is amongst the most sustainable ingredients in the textile industry from a raw material perspective. But how it is processed can have a tremendous impact on not only the quality of the insulation, but that insulation’s impact on the environment. A lot of time and money can be saved by using harsh chemicals and bleach to produce a “clean” down, but at what cost? ALLIED differentiates itself from those cheaper down supply chains by making sure that every detergent used is not only safe for the environment, but also palm oil free. 

ALLIED also has a robust water recycling and treatment system to ensure that all water used in the processing of the down can be reused and done so that also reduces the amount of detergent needed in a typical processing. 

ALLIED was the first down supplier to achieve bluesign® system partner status and continues to work with bluesign® in addition to Oeko-Tex so all down from ALLIED is both an official bluesign® approved and Oeko-Tex 100 certified ingredient. 

ALLIED also works with the HIGG index and closely monitors all carbon emissions in all facilities. Our annual sustainability report can be accessed at the top of the page.

As stewards, ALLIED has partnered with Protect Our Winters and other important organizations to help change the way we, as a community at large, change the way we think about the things we use and how we impact the planet looking towards a cleaner, brighter future.

Working closely with LCA groups and energy consultants, ALLIED has built a roadmap looking toward a carbon neutral future. Too many companies rely on simple offsets to claim carbon neutrality, but we look to adopt a reduce – reuse – then offset approach. 

With new innovations launched in 2021, we have already reduced processing emissions by more than 30% and continue to look at further efficiencies in an already low impact material.

ALLIED has an aggressive plan to provide the first carbon neutral down insulation to all partners by Fall 2023 and work toward carbon neutrality on a company-wide scale through our reduce – reuse – then offset platform in the following years. 

ALLIED is able to provide just about any combination of specifications of conventionally sourced down. We regularly work closely with our partner brands to identify the exact specifications for their desired use. There are limitations on species for fill power and sourcing due to regional animal welfare concerns, but we have always found a solution for every partner.

Almost all duck down sourced by ALLIED comes from China as many of the duck farms throughout Europe engage in force feeding for the production of Foie Gras. However, we do 

In the past 39 years, textile waste in landfills has increased by over 800%.

On average, consumers throw away 80 pounds of textile waste per year, and almost 95% of this waste that ends up in landfills could have been reused or recycled.

Furthermore, diverting just one year of textile waste into a recycling program is the equivalent of taking 7.3 million cars and their emissions off the road.

Virgin down remains an important part of the circular economy, and one of the most sustainable insulations on the planet and is naturally biodegradable. But in looking at ways we can be more proactive in our environmental stewardship practices with our partners, textile waste was one area we felt we could expand upon and build circularity for all our partners.

By working with global recycling centers and developing our own recycling programs, ALLIED now takes old bedding products, apparel and sleeping bags – otherwise destined for the landfill – and is able to reuse the material inside while sending the textiles and trims into their own separate repurposing and recycling streams.

The removed down is cleaned through our DURWASH process the same as conventional material and undergoes rigorous separation processes to create the highest performing recycled down available today.

ALLIED’s RENU:Performance Recycled Down is an insulation with a positive impact on the environment with ALLIED helping to recycle over 1 million pounds of textile waste annually. That’s equivalent to taking over 260 vehicles off the road every year. 

RENU:600 Recycled Down

RENU:700 Performance Recycled Down

RENU: 750+ Ultra High Performance Recycled Down

FEATURES

As textiles push the limits of light weight, dark spots become an increasingly important  issue. 

With a conservative estimation of around 1000 down clusters per gram, even down sourced and traditionally separated to 99.9% white still has the potential to contain at least 1 dark spot per gram.

In a lightweight jacket, this could mean as many as 150 dark spots. 

There remain very limited sources of pure white down (and even those are not completely free of dark spots) so ALLIED has worked with innovative machinists to develop a computerized sorting process that mechanically separates down cluster by cluster, picking out any dark spots. What is left is a pure white down with virtually no dark spots.

All UltraWHT down is processed in the same way as all ALLIED down in our proprietary DuraWash process and sourced from certified farms for animal welfare.

ExpeDRY is ALLIED’s new innovative and disruptive ultra dry down featuring FUZE® technology for a chemical free alternative to hydrophobic-treated down.

ExpeDRY works through a permanent and chemical-free bonding of non- toxic gold particles to the down cluster which aid in the evaporation of water molecules, causing the down to dry faster and stay dry in high humidity and extreme conditions. 

Evaporation is caused through the vibration of the water molecule, which usually happens through the application of heat. The gold particles in the ExpeDRY treatment attached to the down cluster generate a similar “excitement” in the water molecules – without added heat – causing them to vibrate and ultimately speeding up the process of evaporation.

This helps to create a drier insulative chamber as the rate of increased evaporation is greater than the absorption rate of down in almost every real world situation. It also helps with moisture from within such as sweat in high energy activities which could ultimately lead to a more regulated warmth.

ExpeDRY is the future of performance and sustainability for all insulations. 

Features

For products that might require extreme performance in unusual conditions, ALLIED pioneered water resistant down treatments.

The one Achilles heel that down is known for is its ability to perform when submitted to extreme moisture. It is not often that an insulation comes into such extreme contact with water, but even excessive amounts of humidity can wet-out the down, reducing the fill power and losing the ability to retain warmth.

ALLIED’s HyperDRY Water Resistant Down remains among the highest performing, and stands as the benchmark for sustainability in fluorocarbon free hydrophobic down treatments.

The compound in the HyperDRY treatment works the same way as traditional DWR chemicals by building carbon-hydrogen chains on the down cluster to decrease the surface tension, which ultimately causes water to bead and roll off. The difference is that the HyperDRY compound is completely flourocarbon Free

Working closely with our chemical partners, we were able to develop a hydrophobic treatment that could not only provide performance without fluorocarbons, but also allow us to process material more sustainably. Competitors’ treatments rely on additional wash cycles applying the chemistry in a bath, which uses a tremendous amount of water and chemicals. We are able to process our material outside of our processing water supply so we can use far less chemistry, reduce run-off to basically zero and keep from contaminating our water so we can continue to recycle what is used.

FEATURES

It’s about time your insulation works as hard as you do. 

Most insulations can be greatly affected by sudden shifts in the external environment — either overheating when the temperature rises or taking time to warm in sudden drops of temperature.

 “Active” insulations have recently become highly sought after, but most “active” insulations on the market do not perform based on the conditions of the exertion and environment, but are technically “static” insulations meant for active experiences.

Adding infrared reflectivity to the down cluster helps create an insulation that is actively changing in tune with both the wearer and the environment. In our newly developed ThermaDown 02+, as we expend energy from our bodies, it is reflected and returned; and as the external environment changes, excess energy can be reflected to keep from overheating quickly.

Down already has a significantly wider comfort range than synthetic alternatives. ThermaDownO2+ utilizes this range of comfort and down’s ability to warm with minimal weight and combines it with a patent pending technology that coats the down with tiny reflective platelets to provide a full-spectrum infrared reflectivity.

We are essentially combining the efficiency of natural down with the benefits of a space blanket.

As heat from the body is reflected off the platelets, it is converted into energy in an infrared spectrum. This energy interacts with our vascular system and helps us feel warmer and brings more oxygen to our muscles through increased microcirculation. This is why metallic space blankets are so effective for trauma situations. Infrared blankets are also used to help increase circulation in diabetic patients.

ThermaDown allows for greater warmth with less weight, increased thermoregulation, and potential faster recovery through the reflection of energy in this infrared spectrum, creating a truly active insulation that works as hard as you do.

FEATURES

There are times, during long extended stays in cold damp environments, where it is not always an option to keep all your gear dry. In these conditions of constant humidity, it does not take long for fungus, mold and bacteria to build upon damaging the down and reducing its ability to loft. 

Losing loft like this will see a rapid reduction in warmth just when you need it the most. And when fungus and mold set in, it is extremely hard to clean away. 

BioDown works to solve this long-standing problem by incorporating anti-bacterial agents, and is 99.9% effective in inhibiting the growth of mold and bacteria. This will extend the performance of your down through long wet expeditions and significantly increase the overall life of the product.

ALLIED has developed its own unique down processing method that helps distinguish ALLIED down from any other available. 

The method was developed as a way to provide industry leading quality with reduced impact on the environment. It allows ALLIED to use specialized environmentally friendly palm-oil free detergents and recycle water at all facilities worldwide. 

Raw materials come if and testing is done to identify the amount of detergent each lot will need. The process is complex and contain multiple washes, rinses and runs through magnets to remove any and all impurities. No excess detergent is uses, all water is recycled and much of our energy already comes from renewable sources. It’s why we say that ALLIED down is the best insulation on AND FOR the planet. 

F X Down™ is a unique, hybrid fill that successfully bridges the gap between down and synthetic products. Allied Feather & down has worked tirelessly to create synthetic fibers that are capable of working successfully with our award winning down. After developing these fibers that possessed the right attributes for blending, we married the two in our proprietary machinery creating a fill that acts and feels more like down while still performing in the wash.

ALLIED’S F X Down™ is completely customizable and built to the exacting specifications of our partners. However, in our testing for warmth, wash durability, compressibility and water resistance, we recommend the following blends.

Working with strategic technology partners, ALLIED has developed an innovative and robust traceability treatment applied directly to the material itself that catapults the world’s oldest insulation into the next century.

Understanding both the need for guaranteed traceability, as well as considering the interactive future of retail, OptiX™ creates assurances through manufacturing and allows brands to create engaging down experiences for their consumers. Impossible to fake, it is the only insulation that is able to verify the traceability and authenticity of a product through the material itself. 

OptiX™ works by small readers reading the reflected color of the unique natural and non-toxic treatment applied to the down during processing. The technology can detect as low as single digit percent blending for a confidence that partner brands and consumers alike that the material expected in each and every product is exactly what it should be. 

ALLIED has also used our Optix technology to create an engaging and immersive retail experience with the iMirror powered by Nobal Technologies. Readers built into the mirror can read the down inside and give any customer trying a down jacket on in front of the mirror all the information they might want to explore about the down inside the garment. 

ALLIED offers some unique down alternative solutions created to mimic the loft and warmth of down. It is an option for those brands who are looking to develop products or certain areas within a product where down might not be the best solution but loft and warmth is paramount. 

Please contact us for more information on availability. 

Zero Degrees North is ALLIED Feather + Down product and design laboratory. 

With an eye towards those innovative products, design and art, it is a place to call out and even sell what we consider some of our best partner pieces and those collaborations and collections we have been a part of as we constantly rethink how down can be used. 

ALLIED works closely with our partner’s product development teams to not only ensure the best possible material is being used for the needs of every individual product line, but to also rethink how down can be used in innovative new products.

Contact ALLIED to discuss having your products featured in our غN Design and Product Lab. 

As ALLIED shifted its bedding production in its Commerce, Calif., manufacturing facility to produce facemasks in early March, the family owned company began to realize just how big this need was going to be on a global scale.

While the response focused at first on healthcare workers and disenfranchised populations such as those experiencing homelessness, the pandemic response has highlighted just how many people are vulnerable  — including critical frontline service providers necessary for everyday life.

By now it is widely reported that American healthcare workers are facing a shortage of facemasks and other PPE as we continue to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, but they are not the only ones at risk.  “When we started producing masks in our Commerce facility, we never imagined the extent and volume of the need. When we starting talking to our hospitality and institutional partners, it became clear that we could install the same mask manufacturing program in all our global facilities to help serve the needs of all these front line service workers that put their health at risk to help make our lives easier,” said Steve Uretsky, founder and CEO of Los Angeles-based Allied Feather + Down.

In April the global supplier of down and home bedding began the conversions of its bedding manufacturing facilities in Asia, Europe, and at a new facility opening in Montreal. ALLIED has now gone from shipping between 10,000 to 15,000 masks a day, to providing millions of reusable cotton masks to service industry providers. By the end of May, ALLIED will be shipping more than 3,000,000 masks to prominent hotels and resorts, with the ability to add capacity as needed.

According to Vox.com, new research shows that universal mask-wearing helps slow the spread of Covid-19. “New York City, with a population of about 8.4 million, has had over 28,000 coronavirus deaths as of May 18. Meanwhile, Hong Kong has officially recorded only four Covid-19 deaths, despite having 7.5 million residents. One reason that could help explain the stark disparity: In Hong Kong, nearly everyone wears a face mask in public.” According to data from the University of San Francisco, universal mask-wearing could be one of the most important tools in tackling the spread of COVID-19. Researchers cite a medical study currently under peer review which shows that more people wearing “less effective” reusable, non-medical masks is just as effective as medical grade masks.

However, this widespread use of disposable masks comes with a heavy impact on the environment. Unfortunately, disposable masks are not sustainable by definition at this scale, and the environmental nightmare this has the potential to become has not fallen on deaf ears. Already in Hong Kong, discarded masks are washing up on beaches and posing a threat to marine life.

“While we understand the critical need to use face masks, we fear disposable masks are already becoming the new cigarette butt. We found that what we did with our bedding factory in Montebello could be used as a model for our global facilities in Asia, Europe and Canada to offer our hospitality industry associates masks that help keep their employees safe while doing so in a way that is also beneficial for the planet and cost effective over the long term,” continued Uretsky. “By repurposing existing fabrics and creating a product that remains effective through washing, we can help minimize the use of disposable masks that are already starting to become a blight on the landscape.“

For more information about ALLIED wholesale face mask availability, contact info@alliedhospitalitybedding.com.

About Allied Feather + Down

Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while simultaneously driving innovation within the insulation market for over 30 years. The family owned and operated business has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Through the creation of programs such as the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) and Track My Down, ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the welfare of animals while protecting the environment. ALLIED remains a family owned company with facilities worldwide and is proud to produce the highest quality down demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces. Visit www.alliedfeather.com/.

About ALLIED Hospitality

ALLIED Hospitality is the sister finished bedding division to Allied HOME, a family-owned global manufacturer of luxury bedding products designed and manufactured to deliver superior quality and comfort to hospitality and commercial customers. ALLIED Hospitality manufacturers down and synthetic-filled bed pillows, comforters, blankets, mattress pads, and protectors for leading hotels, resorts, cruise lines, timeshare and vacation rental companies, and other institutional users. Based in Los Angeles, CA, with a strategic manufacturing and distribution footprint across the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia, ALLIED Hospitality prides itself on its unwavering commitment to luxury,craftsmanship, comfort, and sustainability delivered through long-lasting and trust-based partnerships. ALLIED Hospitality and ALLIED HOME are divisions of ALLIED Feather + Down, the industry leader in expertly supplying responsibly sourced down to the apparel industry for more than 30 years. Visit www.alliedhospitalitybedding.com

MONTEBELLO, Calif., Nov. 25, 2019  — ALLIED Feather & Down is responding to an article making the rounds in consumer media highlighting the importance that brands, retailers and consumers know where their down comes from. 

The industry faces a challenge from factories sourcing and improperly processing down, and providing material to brands and the end consumer, that has no way to ensure animal welfare, overall cleanliness and quality, not to mention questionable environmental practices. 

It is more important than ever that brands and retailers work with reputable suppliers like ALLIED — where all material is third party certified, and has been proven as the benchmark for cleanliness throughout the world.

The story in question is about a 43-year-old man from Scotland, who became ill and was ultimately diagnosed with “feather duvet lung” contracted through his down bedding. Fortunately he has made a full recovery. 

Feather Duvet Lung disease is a type of Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis triggered by exposure to avian proteins present in the dust of the feathers of a variety of birds. While it is extremely rare that someone is so sensitive to bird protein, the condition has been around for a long time and is also known as Bird Fancier’s Lung, usually affecting people such as pigeon breeders.

The fact that a 43-year-old, otherwise healthy man was diagnosed with this condition due to his bedding actually creates a larger question that consumers are faced with at an increasing rate, and that is, how is a product that produces the amount of dust necessary to make someone sick allowed to be sold? 

BACKGROUND ON DOWN AND DOWN PROCESSING

The down and feather used as insulation in bedding and garments is a byproduct of the food industry. It is aggregated and purchased by suppliers like ALLIED, and further washed and processed to remove all extraneous material. It is then separated to provide higher down cluster percentages while maintaining the right amount of natural oils for resiliency and durability. 

This is not an easy or a quick process; and increasingly, factories and suppliers are looking to cut corners and provide less expensive material to manufacturers from questionable sources and unknown washing processes. One can more quickly wash down with harsh chemicals, but this leads to a brittle material that easily breaks up into fibers, and ultimately into the type of dust affecting those who are extremely sensitive to bird proteins. 

A NEW RETAIL PROBLEM

A recent article from The Wall Street Journal exposed how Chinese factories selling on Amazon occasionally sell mislabeled down products. In the best cases, products purchased by the Journal and labeled Goose Down were tested by third parties and determined to be Duck. We know that if this very basic information is disregarded, it is almost certain that the material has not been washed and processed properly.

In 2015, Canadian retailer Jysk had to recall down duvets because the down material sold to them failed to achieve the content or cleanliness required by law. And with the expanding Amazon and direct e-commerce marketplace, such testing and fail safes are often non-existent, which allows questionable products to make their way to the consumer and creates a false economy that brands, retailers, and consumers need to be aware of. 

THE SOLUTION

ALLIED has long said that “not all down is created equal,” and this has become increasingly important as we see the growth of generic suppliers and vendor sourcing with little to no concern for either animal welfare or proper processing. Even the current sourcing certifications do not account for quality and/or chemical management. It is quite possible to see “responsibly sourced down” processed in the most irresponsible way. 

More than ever, it is important to know where your down comes from and how it has been processed. ALLIED pushed the industry forward in animal welfare certification, having helped create the Responsible Down Standard, but also stands proud as having been identified by independent health and allergy laboratories as the industry standard for cleanliness. 

In a world of discount e-commerce and fast fashion, it is not only important to know where your down came from, but how it was washed. 

“ALLIED has spent millions of dollars and countless hours ensuring our position as industry leaders in animal welfare, and we are equally proud of our sustainable processing methods that have shown to provide the cleanest down in the industry,” said Daniel Uretsky, President, ALLIED Feather & Down. “We are honored that some in the industry have followed our lead to create a more sustainable, cruelty free, and transparent source for the finest natural insulation on earth, and we will continue to invest in educating and protecting consumers from fraudulent and irresponsible sourcing, and from potential allergens.”

THE FUTURE

After helping to create the globally recognized Responsible Down Standard (RDS) with The North Face, and gifting it to the Textile Exchange in 2014, ALLIED wanted to take education around sustainable down and the global supply chain to the next level. TrackMyDown was originally born in Fall 2015 with five partner brands signing on, and the innovative online traceability tool recently signed its 100th partner brand to the ALLIED TrackMyDown program. Partner brands globally from the outdoor, lifestyle, fashion and bedding industries now use the tool and the identifiable hangtags, along with several major online retailers.

About ALLIED Feather & Down
Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while simultaneously driving innovation within the insulation market for over 30 years. The family owned and operated business has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Through the creation of programs such as the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) and Track My Down, ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the welfare of animals while protecting the environment. http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

ALLIED, a producer of down and feather insulation, will be offering annual support and donating 1 percent of the total sales from its HyperDry water-resistant down to POW, starting immediately.

The brand also now produces 100 percent of its water-resistant down without the use of Fluorocarbons (FCs).

“Other conservation organizations are more focused on protecting space. POW is actively engaged in changing consciousness, and this is what I think is so important. It speaks to Allied’s brand ethos, throughout all of our platforms, to help change the way people see and interact with an ingredient like down,” said Allied President Daniel Uretsky. “This partnership is really about taking our winters back. Working together, we can really make a difference.”

Torrey Udall, POW’s Manager of Development and Operations, said, “The opportunity to head into the cold should be a guarantee extended to all future generations. Allied and its leadership have been a material part of the solution on climate and we are proud to have them join POW as a partner. This goes double for our industry.”

Along with financial support, Allied will work with POW through a variety of platforms to help get their shared message out to the public.

“With all the work we do and the partners we have, Allied is in a unique position to leverage our partnership with POW into multi-brand messaging, speaking out for the planet ” said Creative Director Matthew Betcher. “Together we will work with our multitude of partner brands to open larger audiences to engaging social-, print- and event-driven content to try to change legislation, and rethink how conservation works in the 21st century and beyond.”

Protect Our Winters is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that engages and mobilizes the outdoor sports community to lead the fight against climate change through educational initiatives, political advocacy and community-based activism. Founded by pro snowboarder Jeremy Jones in 2007, Protect Our Winters works with businesses, athletes and the community to harness the collective power of the outdoor sports industry to take meaningful action against climate change. For more information, visit  protectourwinters.org.

Leading down supplier will have the largest supply chain of recycled down certified to the GRS, one of the most robust recycled content certifications available

Montebello, California — With a long history of sustainability, social responsibility, and transparency, ALLIED Feather & Down is once again taking the lead on sustainability with its latest news: Today, ALLIED announced that it has received certification to the Global Recycled Standard (GRS). GRS is an internationally recognized product standard for tracking and verifying the content of recycled materials in a final product, while ensuring strict production requirements.

With the planned expansion of this certified supply chain, ALLIED is now the largest certified supplier of high-fill power recycled down, and is able to provide assurance to the consumer through the GRS that the material comes from a post-consumer supply chain and was processed through sustainable means. ALLIED will be supplying TITANIUM:RENU to the industry’s most sustainable and performance driven brands.

Receiving this highest level of certification is an important milestone for ALLIED. Certifying recycled down is a tricky endeavor: because it can not be traced for animal welfare, it’s essential to ensure that the down comes from a 100% post-consumer supply chain. ALLIED’s GRS certified product, TITANIUM:RENU, now achieves this. The GRS provides assurance that TITANIUM:RENU is not blended with untraceable virgin material. This has become a very real problem in the marketing and selling of recycled down. As down prices reached historic lows, a “recycled” product could be sold with a premium price with unscrupulous suppliers blending in virgin material to reach high fill powers and produce larger margins. But without any sense of traceability, it could be subject to possible animal welfare violations. The GRS ensures that all material was collected from post-consumer products.

It also factors in others issues pertaining to environmental and social criteria, such as the processing methods, detergents, and verification that all parts of the post-consumer goods are being recycled, ensuring the integrity of the final product. In the case of ALLIED’s supply chain, the majority of the fabric shells are being recycled and turned into fibers which are currently being used by ALLIED to develop a new synthetic insulation while those not able to be repurposed for fibers are being used to generate energy. 

“We are extremely excited to now offer a 100% post-consumer recycled product that rivals the quality, cleanliness, and durability of the finest virgin down in the world AND that is certified to the highest and most robust standard available today,” says Daniel Uretsky, ALLIED’s President. “This has been a multi-year supply chain mapping exercise looking at the down supply chain and considering product manufacturing, consumer habits, and ultimately overlaying the post-consumer supply chain map. Our research has allowed us to identify regions that are producing extremely high quality recycled goods, so that our GRS certified down is also the highest performance down.”

“TITANIUM:RENU is also a game changer in its complete scope through significantly reducing and repurposing waste,” continues Uretsky. “To simply recycle the one bio-degradable part of these goods is a bit disingenuous. We wanted to ensure that every part of the product is being repurposed and have gone through great lengths to work with this supply chain to ensure this happens.”

ALLIED’s GRS certified TITANIUM:RENU™ is offered in both grey and white with a range of 700-800 fill power, though due to the nature of the inconsistency of post consumer material will only be marketed as 700 fill power. It is a technical performance-driven product which, unlike many recycled down offerings, is uniquely reprocessed in order to meet the highest quality standards, designed to be used season after season with no significant loss to loft, warmth, or compressibility.

In addition, to the GRS Certification, ALLIED’s TITANIUM:RENU™ is also certified to the Recycled Content Standard (RCS), certified by SCS Global.

####

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces. To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

Montebello, Calif. — (For Immediate Release) ALLIED Feather & Down announced the addition of its 100th partner brand to the proprietary TrackMyDown.com education and supply-chain transparency tool, which was awarded ISPO Gold from the world’s largest outdoor industry tradeshow group this year.

After helping to create the now globally recognized Responsible Down Standard (RDS) within its supply chain in collaboration with The North Face, and gifting it to the Textile Exchange in 2014, ALLIED wanted to take education around sustainable down and the global supply chain to the next level. TrackMyDown was originally born in Fall 2015 with five partner brands signing on: Peak Performance, Feathered Friends, Montane, Daniadown, and Merrell. Now, the family-run business welcomes its 100th partner brand to the ALLIED TrackMyDown family. 

Partner brands globally from the outdoor, lifestyle, fashion and bedding industries use the tool, along with several major online retailers, and many are beginning to integrate the revamped traceability and education platform on their own consumer-facing websites as well.

“We are truly honored that the industry has been willing to follow our lead to create a more sustainable, cruelty free and transparent source for the finest natural insulation on earth,” said Daniel Uretsky, President, ALLIED Feather & Down. “We knew it was necessary to develop a tool that would engage the potential purchaser of a down product to help them make more informed decisions. As we continue to be at the forefront of global issues such as Palm Oil Free Certification and reduction of microplastics in the environment, we applaud all of our partner brands and others working to make a difference in the apparel and bedding industries.”

The TrackMyDown.com platform has evolved from not only a traceability tool, but to an educational resource for all. Users are visiting more than just the sourcing pages, with 1.9 average page views per visitor and almost 2 minutes on-site.

“Yes, it is incredibly important to know where your down came from in regards to animal welfare, ” continued Uretsky. “But we always saw the RDS and other standards as the foundation for the real work, and now we are able to communicate source complexities and environmental benefits to consumer directly and through our brand partners at point of purchase.”

Also of note, earlier this year ALLIED Feather & Down was the first non-chemical company in the outdoor industry to launch a home laundry solution for down. “With our knowledge of down backed by 30 years perfecting an environmentally responsible, industry-leading washing and processing method, we thought we could do the same for finished goods and for the down consumer,” said Uretsky. “Down can be mishandled quite easily by using the wrong detergents. We knew that with our knowledge of the material and our relationships with our bluesign partners, we could bring something to the market that performed better for down products than currently existed.” 

The quest to bring this important product to consumers is what led ALLIED to seek and achieve Palm Oil Free Certification from the POFCAP — the first International Palm Oil Free Certification Trademark and Certification Program in the world. This also makes ALLIED only the fourth U.S. company to achieve this level of certification and sustainability. 

>>Media Alert: In an effort to keep up with the modern demands of the retail consumer, and move beyond the QR codes that ALLIED innovated on hangtags for this purpose back in 2015, ALLIED is announcing a new real-time down traceability tool based on optical tagging at the Consumer Electronics Show this January (2020) in Las Vegas. We will have a small prototype in the booth at Outdoor Retailer June 18-20 for one-on-one demonstrations of this never-before-seen technology. 

About ALLIED Feather & Down

Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while simultaneously driving innovation within the insulation market for over 30 years.

The family owned and operated business has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Through the creation of programs such as the Responsible Down Standard (RDS) and Track My Down, ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the welfare of animals while protecting the environment. ALLIED remains a family owned company with facilities worldwide and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces. To learn more about ALLIED, please visit https://www.alliedfeather.com/.

For more information, samples, appointments and media relations, contact:

Formidable Media

Scott Kaier, Public Relations Director

scott@formidable-media.com

802.238.7577

Montebello, California-December 6, 2017 

Larsen’s 8-day Lake Winnipeg course covers winter expedition training, product/gear education, wilderness navigation skills, and more

Montebello, California (December 6, 2017) — This January, one aspiring polar adventurer will win a free chance to train with and learn from one of the world’s best, Eric Larsen, thanks to a joint scholarship from Larsen’s sponsors ALLIED Feather & Down and Helly Hansen, also a close partner of ALLIED. The course is designed to teach the necessary skills and systems required on a winter adventure – whether that’s a weekend excursion or a full expedition to one of the poles.

The Polar Training Scholarship fund, with an estimated $8,000 total value, is a unique opportunity for one deserving outdoor-minded individual to join Larsen’s Level 1 Polar Training Course, taking place on Lake Winnipeg, January 12th – January 21st, 2018. The recipient will join other participants for comprehensive hands-on instruction and training, which culminates in a 4-day winter mini expedition. All necessary gear, equipment, travel costs, and course fees will be provided to the recipient thanks to generous donations from ALLIED and Helly – both of which have been longtime supporters of Larsen and his expeditions. 

Larsen, a polar adventurer, expedition guide, and educator, has spent the past 20 years traveling in some of the most remote and extreme environments on the planet. To date, Eric has completed more North and South Pole expeditions than any other American in history.

“We realize that while many people are interested in participating in this type of experience, there are certain barriers – be it financial, perceived physical ability, or concerns about the cold – that can often seem insurmountable,” says Larsen. “Our goal is to give someone an adventure of a lifetime, no matter what their obstacle may be.”

Larsen has long been a perfect fit to represent ALLIED, with their focus on comfortably getting folks out into the cold, and they’re excited to help one more person enjoy the polar experience. “When Eric approached us about this scholarship, it was a no-brainer for us,” says Matthew Betcher, ALLIED’s creative and marketing director. “Every new person who gets to experience this spectacular environment is one more person who will want to help maintain this and other extreme, remote arctic landscapes – and that’s a win for all of us. But many people could never experience this type of adventure, for a number of reasons, so we wanted to help at least one be able to. And we certainly plan to continue this in the future.”

The course is designed to teach the skills associated with modern-day polar travel, while completing a ‘mini’ expedition in conditions nearly identical to the poles. This adventure will provide a challenging, yet safe, opportunity to experience the many facets of expedition life.

Interested people can learn more and apply here. The deadline to apply is Friday Dec 22nd, 2017. The winner will be selected from an array of criteria and will be selected on December 29th, 2017.

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for 30 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces. To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

About Helly Hansen

Founded in Norway in 1877, Helly Hansen continues to develop professional-grade apparel that helps people stay and feel alive. Through insights drawn from living and working in the world’s harshest environments, the company has developed a long list of first-to-market innovations, including the first supple waterproof fabrics almost 140 years ago. Other breakthroughs include the first fleece fabrics in the 1960s, the first technical base layers in the 1970s, made with Lifa® Stay Dry Technology, and today’s award winning and patented H2Flow® temperature regulating system.

Helly Hansen is a leader in technical sailing and performance ski apparel, as well as premium workwear. Its ski uniforms are worn and trusted by more than 50,000 professionals and can be found on Olympians, National Teams, and at more than 200 ski resorts and mountain guiding operations around the world. Helly Hansen’s outerwear, base layers, sportswear and footwear are sold in more than 40 countries and trusted by outdoor professionals and enthusiasts around the world. To learn more about Helly Hansen’s latest collections, visit www.hellyhansen.com

About Eric Larsen 

Polar adventurer, expedition guide, and educator, Eric Larsen has spent the past 20 years traveling in some of the most remote and extreme environments on the planet. To date, Eric has completed more North and South Pole expeditions than any other American in history. Included in that list are the first ever summer expedition to the North Pole as well as a world record expedition to the South Pole, North Pole and top of Mt. Everest all within a 365-day period. In May of 2014, Eric and team mate Ryan Waters traveled unsupported from northern Ellesmere Island to the Geographic North Pole in 53 days in what realistically will be the last North Pole expedition in history. The journey was featured on Animal Planet in the the US and Discovery Channel globally and in his book On Thin Ice: An Epic Final Quest into the Melting Arctic. Eric has dedicated his adult life to sharing his love for the outdoor world with others.

Now the leading supplier for the outdoor industry, ALLIED has become a beacon for sustainability and animal welfare efforts.

Montebello, California-November 20, 2017  

Now the leading down supplier for the outdoor industry, ALLIED has become a beacon for sustainability and animal welfare efforts 

Montebello, California (November 20, 2017) — This month, a brand many have never heard of – but has been enjoyed by the vast majority of consumers who have ever bought a down comforter, sleeping bag, or jacket – turns 30 years old: ALLIED Feather & Down has been a powerful force in the outdoor industry longer than most of its partner brands have even existed. 

In 1987, company founder Steve Uretsky, after working for years in the down industry, saw the need for an insulation brand supplying high quality performance-driven down insulation to the growing outdoor industry. Starting with a small warehouse outside of downtown Los Angeles, ALLIED has since grown to include three facilities across the USA, two in China, a processing facility in Vietnam, and a new down processing and bedding manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic totaling over 1-million square feet. ALLIED is now the outdoor industry’s largest supplier of down insulation. They’re even currently working on a program that would provide made-in-the-USA products from egg to consumer.

“We’re incredibly proud to have been an integral part of this industry for the last 30 years, and are certainly honoring our own accomplishments this year,” says ALLIED’s founder and CEO, Steve Uretsky. “But this is about so much more than ALLIED: Through innovation in down and feather insulation – ours and others in the industry – the world has been able to enjoy the outdoors on an exponentially greater scale over the last 30 years! That’s why we started this and it’s still the driving force behind our growth and future endeavors. We’re continuing to work hard to make sure we all maintain that privilege forever.” 

While ALLIED is constantly looking to the future with innovative products and techniques, this benchmark anniversary deserves a closer look at the venerable brand’s past. Allied’s been at the forefront of many of the industry’s biggest innovations and landmarks over three decades. Here’s a short history of the brand and a few key product/innovation examples:

HISTORY:

● November, 1987: ALLIED Feather & Down is born with a whole new way to source and process down. 

o In 1987, the down supply chain is just a network of brokers selling raw material to mostly bedding manufacturers and other suppliers who would sell that material on to outdoor and apparel companies. At this time, there’s no transparency beyond this broker and no one really know what the down they’re using is coming from. 

o Looking beyond the brokers and developing relationships directly with the slaughterhouses and farms, ALLIED begins to source the highest quality down, providing a level of consistency and precision unmatched to this day.

● 2009: Signature home bedding brand ALLIED home launches

● 2010: ALLIED becomes the first down supplier to earn bluesign® system partner designation, showcasing their ongoing commitment to the environment and sustainable processing.

● 2011: ALLIED becomes the first company of its kind to engage a third party to audit and review their entire supply chain.

● 2012: ALLIED moves into current L.A headquarters, as part of major expansion

● 2013: ALLIED works with The North Face and Control Union to audit global supply chain in order to build what would eventually become the Responsible Down Standard (RDS), now one of the largest animal-welfare standards in the industry. 

● 2014: The North Face, ALLIED, Control Union and other shareholders gift the RDS to Textile Exchange as an industry standard. ALLIED becomes the first adopter and supplier of RDS certified down. ALLIED continues as the largest supplier of RDS certified down. At this time, ALLIED home also becomes the first bedding manufacturer offering RDS certified bedding products to retailers. 

● 2015: ALLIED launches traceability tool Track My Down, allowing consumers to track the complete history of the origin and quality of the down inside their garment.

● 2016: Achieves 100% third-party certification. This means that all of ALLIED down comes from sources certified to either the RDS, TDS, or brand-level supply-chain initiative backed by the support of animal welfare organizations.

KEY NUMBERS

● November 1987: ALLIED operates in 12,000 square feet in shared warehouse in Commerce, CA. In 2017, ALLIED’s operations span over 1-million square feet, with processing facilities and offices in Montebello, CA; Commerce, CA; Summerville, SC; Hangzhou, China; Anhui, China; Hanoi, Vietnam; Czech Republic.

● Original capacity of 100,000 Kg of down/feather; Now almost 7 million Kg annually.

o That’s enough YEARLY to fill Empire State Building 5 TIMES with ALLIED down.

● Since 1987, ALLIED has processed enough down to outfit over 280,000 Everest summit attempts.

● ALLIED supplied over 2.6 million pounds of RDS-certified down in 2016 alone. This is enough to fill over 4 million heavy parkas!

● The company began with only a few large accounts; ALLIED now has over 250 different brand partners. 

KEY INNOVATIONS

● Pioneered water-resistant down treatment along with Sierra Designs.

○ Sierra Designs releases first product with DriDown in 2012

● Developed an industry leading sustainable processing method using environmentally friendly detergent with a water recycling program that allows ALLIED to recycle approximately 65-million gallons of water annually.

● Other innovations: anti-microbial treatments; infrared active down; down and down alternative fiber blends; technologically innovative traceability treatments, and consumer-facing traceability tools.

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for 30 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces. To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

After years of development, ALLIED Feather + Down is proud to release its new LOFTECH™ insulation – the closest synthetic insulation to natural down ever developed – at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, August 3rd-6th, (Booth 155-407), along with its first recycled down product. Both products will be available for partner products’ 2017 lines.

As the industry leader in down and feather insulation, ALLIED’s new products were developed with the same exceptionally high standards that the company holds for its natural down. All LOFTECH™ insulations feature a unique synthetic cluster built around fibers of varying deniers and fiber construction to mimic the natural down cluster. With this variation of size, type and shape, LOFTECH™ clusters are able to bind to each other better than other 3-dimensional synthetics, trapping more air and ultimately creating more warmth. Other similar insulations on the market currently use a single denier manufactured in a very uniform way which reduces warmth and increases cold spots caused by normal washing. 

LOFTECH™ will ultimately come in three varieties: Summit, an elite-performance product to be launched at ORSM; plus a recycled and an organic option, both to be released in upcoming seasons. Summit has been tested to have the loft of 625 fill power, with warmth closer to a 700 fill-power goose down. It is twice as warm as the nearest competitor.

The development of these new “blowable synthetic” insulations is based on the desire to create insulation options that allow for a wide range of uses and greater warmth ratings. Until now, most similar synthetic insulations have required very small baffles, limiting their use to lighter weight outerwear. Products that require larger baffles, such as warmer parkas and sleeping bags, are now possible with LOFTECH™. 

“The launch of our Summit series – which is the ultimate in performance – establishes a new benchmark in down-like alternatives. There are very few good blowable synthetic insulations. With LOFTECH™, we set out to create a series of premium blowable insulations that would act and feel more like down but with some added benefits,” says Daniel Uretsky, President of ALLIED Feather & Down. “We know down, so we started there, using our knowledge of the down cluster to build a synthetic fiber cluster based on the properties that make down so successful.”

The same high standards were applied for their recycled down. Titanium:RENU™ is not just another “greener” offering, but a top-quality down that happens to be recycled. Uretsky continues, “Recycled down is also nothing new to the down industry, but for ALLIED it was important that we were able to offer a product that would perform like virgin down, with the consistency, quality and durability our partners have come to expect. We have spent the last year understanding the complex supply chain of post-consumer material and have identified partnerships that allow us to now offer a true performance recycled down.”

TITANIUM:RENU™ is offered in both grey and white with a fill power within ALLIED’s titanium range (700-800 fill power). It is a unique technical product which, unlike most recycled products, can be used season after season with no significant loss to loft, warmth or compressibility. They are also working with SCS global services and their Recycled Content Certification to certify and label at the product level that the material comes from 100% post-consumer goods. 

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces.  To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

In yet another sustainability milestone, ALLIED Feather & Down has completed certification to become the industry’s largest supplier of down certified under NSF International’s Global Traceable Down Standard (TDS).

At the start of 2016, ALLIED estimated over 70% of their down had been certified by independent third parties to ensure that all down had been collected from humanely treated birds. With this new certification, in one of Europe’s largest supply chains, ALLIED is much closer to the company’s ultimate goal of having 100% of its down certified by 2017 and immediately brings to market an unprecedented amount of TDS certified down, allowing their partner brands another alternative in responsibly sourced and traceable down.

ALLIED is also working to certify additional supply chains that will make Global Traceable Down a viable option for a larger number of brands and retailers across the outdoor, fashion, and bedding industries – giving brands the choice of selecting the standard that works for them. The extremely comprehensive criteria in TDS provides the highest level of protection to animals from live plucking, confinement in tight spaces and force feeding. These are similar to the other major certification, the Responsible Down Standard (RDS), but TDS takes this one step further: NSF International, the organization that oversees the process (including the standard development, auditing and certification), also requires the mother animal to be treated under the same rules.

Cara Chacon, Senior Director for Social & Environmental Responsibility at Patagonia, adds that, “The Global TDS is the strongest standard available to protect geese and ducks in the meat industry from cruel practices such as live-plucking and force-feeding. We applaud the commitment ALLIED Feather & Down has demonstrated to best in class animal welfare and down traceability practices.”

According to NSF International, it was particularly important to go beyond other existing programs, which start at the hatchery, and extend protection to parent farms. All organizations handling the down are audited and verified to have good management systems in place to keep the certified down segregated from conventionally-sourced down.

“ALLIED’s leadership in the down industry is further strengthened by the work they have done regarding their certification to the Global Traceable Down Standard,” said Jenny Oorbeck, General Manager of NSF Sustainability, a division of NSF International. “They have been a valued partner in the implementation of the Global Traceable Down Standard within their organization and beyond.”

ALLIED estimates that with this certification alone, more than 1 million birds can now immediately be certified under the TDS. They’re currently securing certification for additional sources which will at least double its amount of TDS-certified material.

“We’re incredibly proud of achieving TDS certification, especially on such a huge scale. We feel if we’re going to claim responsibly sourced products, we need to meet the most rigorous standards, and do it in a big way – even if that means changing a law that potentially benefits everyone, including our competitors,” says Daniel Uretsky, ALLIED’s President. “In addition to our popular Track My Down program, I think we make a powerful statement that we’re committed to responsible practices no matter the scale, difficulty or cost. Our consumers deserve that.

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces.  To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

About NSF International:

NSF International is an independent organization that writes standards, tests and certifies products for the construction, food, water and commercial and consumer goods industries to minimize adverse health effects and protect the environment (nsf.org). Founded in 1944, NSF is committed to protecting human health and safety worldwide. NSF is a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Food and Water Safety and Indoor Environment. NSF Sustainabilityoffers a range of standardized and proprietary methods of measuring sustainability for organizations, products, processes, supply chains and services. Through its National Center for Sustainability Standards, NSF has developed animal welfare and sustainability standards for product categories such as down, chemicals, building products and materials, and water quality. NSF works with leading regulators, scientists, engineers, public health and environmental health professionals, and industry representatives to develop these transparent, science-based standards, protocols, and product category rules.

Responsible Down Standard-certified products and TrackMyDown.com showcased at this week’s New York Home Fashion Market.

New York, NY (September 28, 2015) — ALLIED home, the innovative insulation division of ALLIED Feather & Down, along with London Luxury, the leader in luxury and innovative utility home textiles, through their exclusive partnership, will showcase responsible sourcing, consumer-traceability, and insulation technologies at New York Home Fashion Market (NYHFM), Sept. 28-Oct. 1 in Manhattan.

The Trackmydown.com (TMD) initiative – the industry’s first comprehensive consumer-facing down-traceability website, that allows down users to see where their down comes from, as well as important information such as a verified fill power, cleanliness, and a final content analysis – will be featured at both the ALLIED Feather & Down and London Luxury showrooms. Both will also feature finished products, all of which are RDS product-level certified as well as part of the TMD program.

“The Track My Down program has been a huge success in the outdoor apparel industry, and we’re proud to now bring it to the bedding industry, in partnership with the leader in bedding innovations, London Luxury,” says Daniel Uretsky, President of ALLIED Feather & Down. “Responsible Down Standardscertification is very important, but it doesn’t tell the consumer everything they should know about their down. We’d ultimately love to see all natural fill meet these responsible-sourcing standards, and we are equally passionate about bringing this information to consumers, where they can engage deeper with the product. RDS certification with the proprietary Trackmydown.com tool is definitely a win-win-win for the consumers, brands, and geese and ducks.”

“We are thrilled to be the first to bring RDS and Track My Down to retail, and we are doing it in a big way,” adds Marc Jason, CEO of London Luxury. “At London Luxury, we strive to be first to market with innovation. RDS and TMD provide retailers and consumers alike with a trusted seal of approval that insures the highest standards of quality, transparency, and the most important independent verification possible.”

Since the development of the tool with the outdoor apparel industry one year ago, the program has proven highly successful. ALLIED has worked with a number of prestigious apparel partner brands to launch the tool for the fall 2015 season with garments on the racks now. London Luxury is bringing this unique, proprietary tool to the down bedding market, with products hitting shelves in the coming months.

To see the bedding collection, visit the London Luxury showroom at 295 Fifth Ave, Suite 817. For an appointment, please call: 212 679-8300 akeller@londonlux.com.

ALLIED’s showroom is located at 15W. 28th St. (7th floor). To schedule an appointment please contact Matthew Betcher: matthewbetcher@alliedfeather.net.

About London Luxury LLC

London Luxury LLC is a leading global manufacturer of premium products for the home with a focus on innovation, advanced technology and strategic brand marketing. London Luxury has exclusive long term partnerships with a myriad of leading global iconic brands and exclusive rights to a number of innovative bedding technologies. The company is headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, with an extensive showroom in New York City and international quality assurance offices around the globe. For more information please visit our website:  www.londonlux.com.

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces.

Natural, wax-based treatment with proprietary application technique facilitates the development.

With a long history of social responsibility and transparency, ALLIED Feather & Down is again taking the lead on sustainability with its latest news: They’ve developed a new water-resistant (WR) down treatment that completely eliminates fluorocarbons without sacrificing performance. Using new technology, all of ALLIED’s water-resistant down will be fluorocarbon free by 2017.                                             

ALLIED has been working towards this since the company first starting experimenting with FC-free treatments five years ago. This lead to their first FC-free waterproof down product, HyperDRY ECO, which was first available for Fall ‘15 products. This was a positive first step in reaching the company’s larger goal of having all of ALLIED’s waterproof down be fluorocarbon free.

After years of research, the R&D team at ALLIED has finally achieved this, having developed a process combining a unique, natural-wax-based treatment utilizing a proprietary process that results in less water usage and better performance, while guaranteeing greater adhesion and no chemical discharge. 

Highlights of the new process, by the numbers:

• 30-40-times more hydrophobic than untreated down
• 25-times LESS water used than conventionally treated down
• 95% treatment absorption vs 60-80% in traditional systems
• Requires 5-times less treatment to achieve same performance

“From the outset, our final goal was to offer only one waterproof down product which is not only FC free, but treated in the most environmentally sensitive way,” says Daniel Uretsky, ALLIED’s President. “With this new initiative, everyone – consumers, brands and retailers – can be confident that starting in 2017, ALLIED’s water-resistant down will be FC free from egg to finished product. And that it will be produced in the most sustainable way available.”

Consumers who demand FC-free water-resistant down now, however, need not wait. Many of ALLIED’s partner brands are already using its original FC-free product, HyperDRY ECO. Montane, for instance, is already 100% FC-free for their entire line of 2016 WR-down apparel.

We’re very proud to be FC free in our entire ’16 down apparel line. ALLIED’s product has been meticulously developed and is absolutely on par with Montane’s exceptional quality standards,” says Marketing Manager Terry Stephenson. “And of course we also love the fact that it’s 100% RDS certified and offers the Track My Down program.”

ALLIED will also be giving back by partnering with 1% for the Planet to help clean the waterways and wildlife damaged by the previous use of fluorocarbons in the industry. Starting immediately, all purchases of the newly formulated FC-free HyperDRY down will result in a 1% donation to the foundation. More on the details will be released soon.

About ALLIED Feather & Down:

ALLIED Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, ALLIED has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. ALLIED is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. ALLIED values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, hospitality and fashion marketplaces.  To learn more about ALLIED, please visit http://www.alliedfeather.com/.

Allied Feather & Down, primary supplier of down certified to Textile Exchange’s Responsible Down Standard (RDS), is now supplying RDS certified down to leading brands in the Outdoor, Home and Bedding, and Fashion markets including: The North Face, Eddie Bauer, Marmot, Mammut, Nau, Outdoor Research, Helly Hansen, Montane, Down Linens, and Down & Feather Co.

The Responsible Down Standard (RDS), which launched in January 2014, is a third-party certified animal welfare and traceability standard to help ensure humane treatment of geese and ducks from goslings to finished products. RDS Certified down is expected to hit retail in select Fall 2015 lines. 

The goal of the RDS is to protect animals from harm and enable traceability at a global scale throughout the entire down industry.  Early adoption of RDS down by world-renowned brands signifies the importance of such an initiative and represents a major step forward for the RDS in becoming a global standard for shifting the industry towards better practices.

Down and feather are by-products of waterfowl that are farm-raised for their food supply and industrial farming of animals poses the potential for mistreatment. Public concern originating from animal welfare groups to issues such as live-plucking and force-feeding elicited the need for more transparency in the down industry specifically, which sparked the concept of the Responsible Down Standard. In 2012, The North Face in partnership with Control Union Certifications, an accredited third-party certification body, and Textile Exchange, a global nonprofit dedicated to sustainability in the textile industry, developed the concept for the standard, which first involved developing a clear understanding of where the down was coming from.  Needing to start with the very beginning of the supply chain, the group called on Allied.

Allied recognized the importance of facilitating greater transparency in how its down is procured and sourced. Allied supported the research and development of the standard by walking Control Union through every step of its supply chain, evaluating conditions and identifying where auditing should take place as a way to certify that there is no live-plucking, force-feeding or any other mistreatment of animals, from gosling to finished product. Allied then became the first supplier to adopt the standard when it launched in January 2014. Allied has also began offering educational seminars for brands, retailers, media and industry stakeholders on origins of down and responsible sourcing.

“We are pleased to see the entire down industry talking about these issues and taking ownership of animal welfare and responsible sourcing.  Transparency is key—starting at the source. Allied has been 100% on board throughout the development of this standard and we will remain committed to it as a leading supplier of RDS certified down and educator on responsible sourcing,” said Daniel Uretsky, President of Allied Feather & Down.

Earlier this summer, Allied’s supply chains in Europe and Asia and its U.S. processing facilities were audited and certified by Control Union. Completion of these certifications has enabled Allied to offer RDS Certified down to buyers in the Outdoor, Home and Bedding, and Fashion industries.

“Having such a diverse and well respected group of brands adopt the RDS so quickly is great news,” said Anne Gillespie, Director of Industry Integrity at the Textile Exchange. “It will certainly help this new industry standard to gain momentum, and ultimately bring about the shift in industry practices that is our ultimate goal.”

According to Uretsky, many of its vendor partners are finding peace of mind in using RDS certified down. It offers insurance for brands and assurance for consumers and NGOs that leading brands are taking the greatest measures possible to ensure responsible sourcing of the down used in their products.  A brand’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) stance is an important consideration for consumers; they want to make responsible purchases. Knowing that the down inside their jacket was from well-treated animals assures consumers that the brand they choose to wear adheres to their own values.

“Down is a critical component of mountain clothing and ensuring that it is competently and respectfully sourced is a responsibility any brand in the outdoor industry must ensure,” said Paul Cosgrove, Brand Director of Montane. “RDS down from Allied can professionally provide this with a high specialism and quality that few can achieve. It’s for this reason we will use RDS down from Allied Feather & Down.”

Allied encourages brands to adopt the RDS so that they may ensure animal welfare and they may reassure their customers that they are choosing the most responsibly made products.

About Allied Feather & Down:
Allied Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, Allied has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Allied is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. Allied values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, home and fashion marketplaces.

Allied Feather & Down, the outdoor industry’s primary supplier and processor of down, has completed the audit and certification process of the Textile Exchange Responsible Down Standard (RDS) for a significant percentage of its global down supply chain. The North Face, one of the original creators of the RDS has committed to purchasing the majority of this down and will be integrated it into products beginning in Fall 2015. This commitment signifies a major step toward bringing responsibly sourced down to market.

The RDS was developed by The North Face in partnership with Control Union Certifications, an accredited third-party certification body, and Textile Exchange, a global nonprofit dedicated to sustainability in the textile industry. Allied supported the development of the RDS by leading The North Face and Control Union Certifications through their global supply chain, evaluating conditions and identifying where auditing should take place as a way to certify that there is no live plucking, force feeding or any other mistreatment of animals, from gosling to finished product. In addition, the RDS has strict traceability requirements to validate the source of certified down and feathers.

“We are proud to be the first to offer down from global RDS certified supply chains. We are thrilled to have partners like The North Face and other leaders in the industry adopting this comprehensive standard,” said Daniel Uretsky, COO of Allied Feather & Down.

The North Face is currently working with Allied and Control Union to apply the RDS across every level of its down supply chain. Starting in 2015, The North Face will source 30 percent of its overall down from a fully audited and RDS-certified supply chain and incorporate it into its Fall 2015 product line. The North Face aims to source and integrate RDS down for 100% of down products by 2017.

“We are excited to announce the forthcoming reality of more responsible down in our products through the partnership of Allied, among others,” said Adam Mott, Director of Sustainability, The North Face. “The RDS is currently the broadest and most comprehensive approach to animal welfare available in the down supply chain. Through its collective use, the industry will see improved animal welfare conditions and better traceability in the down supply chain at a much larger scale than The North Face could accomplish alone,” he said.

Today at 9:00 a.m. at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, Allied (#155-306) will be presented with official RDS certifications for its China and Europe supply chains by Control Union. 

Also, in keeping with Allied’s commitment to education and the RDS, Allied will be offering a breakfast seminar at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market. Representatives from Allied, Textile Exchange and The North Face will educate vendors and retailers on how working with Allied and the RDS brings added value to their brands and products.  The seminar will be held at Outdoor Retailer on Friday, August 8 at 7:30 a.m. in the Salt Palace, room 151G.  Vendors and retailers interested in hosting additional seminars should contact communications manager, Lauren Fallert, lfallert@verdepr.com.

About Allied Feather & Down:
Allied Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, Allied has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Allied is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. Allied values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, home and fashion marketplaces.

Allied Feather + Down, a global supplier and processor of down within the home and outdoor industries, is building on its commitment to transparency by offering global educational seminars to vendor partners, retailers and consumers. The goal of these seminars will be to educate users on the natural qualities of down, Allied’s practices and products, and down industry trends.

Allied’s decision to host educational seminars was inspired by the unmet demand for additional information on sourcing and procurement practices. In talking to retail and vendor partners, it became apparent that a majority of individuals with a vested interest in down were lacking information on even the basic facts such as the difference between feather and down. As the industry leader, Allied is making it their responsibility to educate vendor partners, retailers, and consumers.

“After being approached with many questions on down and on our practices over the years, we have come to realize that there is a lot of confusion in the market place when it comes to down,” said Daniel Uretksy, COO of Allied.  “Most people we have spoken to- from consumer to manufacturer- have limited knowledge on this byproduct beyond the words “fill power”.  Allied is taking initiative to ensure that people are well informed on what’s inside their jacket or bedding that is keeping them warm.”

The seminars will be hosted by Daniel Uretsky and may incorporate guest speakers from third parties such as International Down and Feather Testing Laboratory (IDFL),  Textile Exchange,and Control Union.

The Allied Educational Seminars will address topics such as:

Down 101: The anatomy of down
Quality: How the down is chosen and how it is tested
Innovations in down technologies
Sourcing: Where the down is sourced from and how it is collected
Traceability: Steps Allied is taking to show where their down is coming from
Allied Down and its commitment to the Responsible Down Standar Seminars open to vendors, retailers and consumer

“We just returned from our first educational seminar in Hong Kong which we hosted with IDFL; the event was a huge success,” said Uretsky. “We had triple the attendance we were anticipating. After seeing the value this brought to our audience, we are eager to map out the next stops on this tour.”

Allied hopes that the seminars will help to educate users of down and dispel the misconceptions while continuing to lead the down industry by encouraging transparency.

The debut of the educational seminars in North America will be held at a breakfast at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, on Friday, August 8. Vendors and retailers interested in hosting a seminar should contact communications manager, Lauren Fallert, lfallert@verdepr.com.  

To learn about down in the meantime, visit Allied’s FAQ page.

About Allied Feather & Down:
Allied Feather & Down is the world’s leader in the manufacture of the highest quality downs and their blends. Founded in Vernon, Calif. in 1987, Allied has been responsibly sourcing and sustainably processing down while driving innovation within the market for over 25 years. The family-run operation has earned the reputation as the largest, most reliable and most responsible supplier of raw material in the industry. Allied is committed to safeguarding the environment and transparency in ensuring the welfare of animals, which contributed, in part, to their prestigious bluesign® approval. Allied values longstanding relationships with the largest suppliers on the planet and is proud to produce the highest quality down technologies demanded by the most discerning brands in the outdoor, home and fashion marketplaces.

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Allied Feather & Down, a global, family-owned purveyor of feather and down, today announced that it has received certifications stating that all Allied products are bluesign® approved for textile manufacturers. This approval marks the first 100% natural, feather and down products to receive the bluesign® certification and places the company on an elite list of approved raw components for textile manufacturers committed to following the most stringent, environmentally-friendly standards without compromising functionality or quality. 

The bluesign® standard guarantees that along the entire production chain, products only contain components and pass through processes that are harmless to people and the environment. The bluesign® standard is built around five key principles – resource productivity, consumer safety, air emission, water emission and occupational health and safety – and is designed to foster a healthy, responsible textile industry.

Allied Feather & Down provide a 100% natural, environmentally-friendly product that has evolved for 300 million years, saves energy and offers the world’s best insulation. Down and feathers are a unique natural resource which Allied manufactures via proprietary processes that take sustainability into careful consideration. Always vigilant of their footprint on the environment, their feathers and down undergo a proprietary washing process using recycled water and bio-degradable detergent. Feathers and down are sourced from leading providers in Europe and China, an important and discernable distinction over the life of a garment or product.  In addition to the bluesign® certification, Allied Feather & Down is certified as asthma and allergy-free and has a sensitivity rating higher than “hypo-allergenic”. A leader in the industry, Allied Feather & Down plays an active role in setting global industry standards for down as a founding member of the International Alliance for the Pro Down Initiative and a certified member of the International Down and Feather Bureau. 

“We clean, grade and process more than 5 million pounds of feathers and down per year,” said Steve Uretsky, president and CEO, Allied Feather & Down. “Our customers are global brands who are committed to the environment and to every element of the supply chain. We are aligned in our commitment to the environment,” he added. “Approval by bluesign technologies ag has tremendous value to our company.  It’s a validation of our continuous commitment to the environment and it creates awareness among the types of companies that we want to do business with.” 

The bluesign® bluefinder is an advanced search engine for textile manufacturers containing bluesign® approved raw materials and chemical components that meet the bluesign® standard. The advanced search engine is always up-to-date and provides textile manufacturers with the newest easy-to-use textile-relevant EHS information. The bluesign® bluefinder is the tool to help manufacturers manage their input streams regarding sustainability. “Our goal with the bluesign® certification is to enable committed companies in the textile industry to stay true to their goals of protecting people and the environment in a cost-effective way. By providing all of the information they need about products and input streams to them in advance,” said Stefan Schlosser from bluesign technologies ag. The independent bluesign® standard is a guarantee that, along the entire production chain, products only contain components and pass through processes that are harmless to people and the environment,” he added.

About Allied Feather: 

Founded in 1987 Allied Feather & Down  has earned the trust of the most demanding global brands by delivering unsurpassed warmth, quality, comfort and peace of mind to its end user and by leading the way in managing the global supply of down for its business partners. Leading industry brands have the ability to influence the market and pick their supplier and they choose Allied Feather. Their choice of Allied Feather & Down as their supplier of product says a great deal about how this family owned company does business. If a product says Allied, it will offer warmth, quality, durability, comfort and an allergen-free guarantee. 

About bluesign technologies ag

bluesign technologies ag was founded in 2000. Since then, the bluesign® standard has been adopted by different worldwide leading textile manufacturers. Various significant key players of the chemical and machine industry rely on the bluesign® standard and endorse it as bluesign® supporters. Several well-known brands of the sporting goods and fashion industry benefit as bluesign® members of the extensive knowledge of bluesign technologies ag. In 2011, SGS has acquired a 80% stake in bluesign technologies ag.

In 2019, ALLIED Feather + Down started Into The Cold as a media platform to express voices and representations of large parts of the industry and ideas that, in our opinions, were not being heard. We have worked with a wide variety of ambassadors to feature unique art, editorial fashion shoots, photo essays and stories – all with a unique point of view. 

We have looked at the horrific beauty of climate change, what it means to stop suddenly in an era of speed, how to rethink the concept of the “outdoors” and reimagined how down can be worn – all including our partners and their products. 

We are always seeking partners and brands – big and emerging to work with on rethinking traditional norms and attitudes. 

Contact us to inquire about becoming a contributing partner to Into The Cold print and online. 

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One of the best attributes of down is its durability and longevity. In a world of fast fashion, your down jacket is one item in your closet that can last a lifetime. All that is needed is proper care – of which the information around down care can be misleading at best and destructive at worst. 

It is a lot easier to care for your down product than many people think. All it takes is the proper detergent and a little patience. Clean down is able to retain more warmth, has better loft, better compression, will look and feel better, and leads a longer functioning life cycle of the product. Taking proper care and regularly cleaning your down will keep it performing as well as – if not better than – the day you bought it.

Washing down is not unlike washing our hair. 

The down cluster itself is a Beta Keratin protein, and as such, much of the same care is needed with down as we take with that hair on our head. Too much oil or dirt or any other foreign substance, and it goes flat and clumpy. Soap or chemicals that are too harsh can strip it of the oils we need for it to be bouncy and resilient, making it brittle.

And like our hair, the down cluster contains essential fats and oils that are necessary to retain resiliency and loft. When we process material at ALLIED, we look to retain a very precise amount of these, while achieving an extremely clean product. This is why the composition of the detergent itself is extremely important. Harsh chemicals and overprocessing can cause irreparable damage. 

Think of our ALLIED DOWN WASH  as a shampoo for your down jacket. 

Additives like bleach or other harsh chemicals in most laundry detergents might be able to get your product clean quickly, but can strip the down of those fats and oils necessary for the performance and durability of the product. 

You would never use your hand soap for your hair, so why would you use a regular detergent for your down?

It is actually quite easy to clean your down product.

The two biggest things you can do to damage the down inside a garment is to use harsh detergents, and to not dry completely. While we always suggest following the recommended washing instructions on the garment, the following is generally the best way to wash your down product.

It is critical to start with a detergent specifically created for down products, like our ALLIED DOWN WASH, which can be purchased here.

After 30 years of processing some of the highest performing and cleanest down in the world, we have worked with our bluesign system chemical partner to develop a home laundry detergent to get the down inside your products as clean as the day it left our facilities. And we have done all this without using palm oil derivatives and with detergents that are completely safe for the environment. When you are using the world’s most eco-friendly insulation, equal care should be taken with the products used to clean it.

There are other “down washes” on the market, and we have found that most of them do a good job at cleaning the garment and protecting the down. They do this by using very little active ingredient to keep from stripping the fats and oils. These all come from chemical companies that may understand the chemistry behind cleaning fabrics, but don’t have the experience and knowledge of cleaning down that we do. Down, as a natural material, can quickly grow mold, bacteria and other allergens if not properly cleaned. It can also be stripped of its natural resiliency and insulating characteristics if cleaned too harshly. It was our goal to create the best detergent for the cleaning of the down itself. This required a lot of work to reformulate our renowned production detergent for home use. The goal was to create a detergent with a high concentration of an active ingredient that attacked the dirt, mold and grime down can collect after use. If you purchase a down-specific detergent, you expect it to actually clean the down, not just the face fabric.

We have also worked with our friends at Juniper Ridge, who have foraged and locally distilled an essential oil from our California backyard to provide a slight scent that reminds you of waking up in a forest near the ocean’s edge. The ingredients are responsibly foraged and hand distilled here in California.

Contact us for wholesale purchases.

The shape and composition of the down cluster is the key to its unparalleled warmth to weight. 

Different from a feather, the down cluster has thousands of filaments radiating from a central point, and each of these filaments have barbs, much like the branches of a fir tree. These barbs connect with the barbs and filaments of the nearby clusters, creating a structural web of insulating air.

The natural brilliance of the down cluster is that it is able to fill a volume with very little material and incredibly low weight. 

Each filament is just a fraction of the width of a human hair, and it is estimated that there are as many as 30 miles of these filaments in just one gram of down. 

While widely misunderstood, there are small differences between the down clusters of the duck and goose. The goose down cluster tends to have longer filaments, a different barb shape and a unique fat and oil composition. This all makes the larger goose down cluster slightly more compressible and resilient when it comes to jackets or sleeping bags that need to provide as much warmth as possible with minimal weight. Both insulate in the same way and more often than not it is almost impossible to distinguish between the two.

The down cluster is composed of a protein — beta keratin — which is very similar to our human hair. Like our hair, it has fat and oils that give it bounce and resiliency. But again like our hair, proper processing, care and handling are needed to ensure durability, which can long outlive any garment. 

As a by-product of the food industry, all down is sourced from domesticated birds with the exception of Eider down. 

The species of goose found in the supply chain is Anser Anser f. Domestica which is a domesticated descendant of the Greylag Goose. Occasionally there may be other related regional species found in the rural supply chain. 

For duck, the most common is Anas Boschas Domestica, descended from the Mallard. Other species throughout the supply chain include descendants of Muscovy ducks. It is important to note that in most cases, ALLIED will not source from Muscovy ducks due to the difficulty in keeping them in captivity and the animal welfare issues that can arisde from farming this breed. 

There are slight differences between the quality of the species and regions in which they are raised. However, most of the marketing around quality stems from a time when most material was aggregated and now we find a lot more overlap in quality from Duck to Goose and from China to Europe. 

In the industrial Chinese supply chain, there is a desire for a more tender meat, and due to that demand  both duck and geese are younger when they go to be processed for food than their European counterparts. The average age of ducks are 8-11 weeks and geese are slightly older at 10 – 16 weeks. 

In Europe, the preference is for a gamier tasting meat and there the birds are processed at older ages — 11 – 14 weeks for duck and 18-24 for geese. 

The older birds will tend to grow more mature and larger down clusters, and when material was aggregated and simply sold as duck or goose down from these regions, a qualitative assumption was made that European goose was superior in quality to Chinese duck. And while in general that still is the case in terms of warmth to weight, we now can offer 800 fill power duck down from China that rivals goose down from Europe. 

Sourcing from the collector part of the supply chain offer even older birds and larger down clusters. Many of these regions with collector sourcing also tends to be colder than industrial farms and thus, produce an extremely high quality down.

There is also a slight difference in both how the shape of the cluster itself and the fat and oil content between species. Goose tend to produce down that has longer fibers which makes it generally more compressible for a given fill power. The fat and oil composition of the goose also gives it a slightly more durable nature when considered over several years. 

For more on the supply chain, click here.

The extreme warmth-to-weight ratio that can be achieved by down is due to the size of insulating air pockets created. This is referred to as loft, and measured as “Fill Power”. 

Fill Power is simply a measurement of the volume created by a given amount of down — in most cases, measured in 30 grams per cubic inch. The higher the fill power, the greater warmth to weight that material has. Down has an extremely linear warmth curve and can be used in many ways. In theory, one could use half as much 1000 fill power down as one would need of 500 fill power to create a product of the same warmth but extreme compressibility. But there are also times where fabrics or designs might require a smaller down cluster to provide loft. 

Most down is measured according to the US/IDFB method. This standard has proven to provide the most reliable and provide the most consistent results. Other global / regional standards may produce different fill powers due to small changes in methodology. Until very recently, the two biggest standards – the US/IDFB and the EU – both gave far different results for the same lot of down. The EU standard at the time relied on a method of conditioning that was never as consistent as the US steam method. So while the fill power would always test “higher” under the US standard, the lack of consistency between tests for the preferred conditioning recently allowed for the EU adoption of the steam method – making the US and EU fill power results much closer than previously.

There are three basic steps to testing fill power: 

1. Down is stored and conditioned prior to testing. This allows the down to fully expand following what can be months of tightly packed storage. Different standards provide for different conditioning methods. The most consistent is the steam method where the down is steamed to allow it to loft. This is the method used by the US/IDFB. Other methods require different conditioning such as heating in an oven. The EU standard now allows for several different conditioning methods – including steam – which makes it much closer to the US than it was prior. 

2. Most methods now use 30g of down loaded into a cylinder, the diameter of which is determined by the individual method. Most testing cylinders are now very close in size providing more universal results than in years past. These periodic adaptations of other standards is also why the US/IDFB is measured in competing metrics – cubic inches / 30 grams. 

3. The cylinder has a lid slowly lowered onto the down and measurements are taken to quantify the total volume achievable by the down. Normally, 3 tests are done and the average is taken to provide the final fill power. 

For more specific differences between the different measuring standards, please see the following documents from the IDFL in the links below. 

Down is a by-product of the food industry, and as such, most down comes from those countries that eat the most duck and geese. That’s why approximately 75% of the world’s down comes from China with the heavy majority of the rest coming from Central and Eastern Europe. This supply chain is one that has been around for hundreds of years and still has not changed much over the generations. 

There are generally three different modules of the supply chain with each providing their own benefits and complexities – industrial, collector and parent farms. We estimate that the collector and industrial supply chains are fairly evenly split with the parent farms only representing 3-8% of the total global down supply.

Industrial Farms

Due to the age of the duck and goose supply chain, and the fact that many farms have been owned and operated by generations of the same family, the use of the word “industrial” in this supply chain refers almost solely to relative scale. While these farms have larger contracts with slaughterhouse groups and produce far more birds than the other farms in the supply chain, these farms are generally not at the industrial level and overcrowding seen in other poultry supply chains in other parts of the world. The norm on these farms is a location on large bodies of water with birds roaming free. Many times, larger goose farms act as a secondary use to the land. We have seen many farms on orchards with the fruit trees providing natural shade for the birds and the birds supplying fertilization – creating a surprising circularity.

Traceability within the industrial supply chain is far easier than the collector-based module, but this is where one has to be careful from an animal welfare perspective. In many parts of Europe, force feeding is the norm. You’ll probably never see French duck down from ALLIED for this reason. 

The Parent Farms

Within the industrial supply chain are farms where mother geese and ducks are raised to lay eggs for trade. These parent farms represent approximately 3-8% of the global supply chain. At the end of their cycle after 4-6 years, they become part of the food supply chain. 

Collector based 

This supply chain is a maze of collectors that gather material from micro farms sometimes as small as a single household raising birds to feed their family. Collectors travel from house to house within a village collecting all the waste products left out to be picked up – the down and feather from the birds being one. The village collectors will then usually aggregate material with a larger village collector who then transports to a regional collector where material is further aggregated and ultimately purchased and shipped from there.

These small farms and households raising down to simply feed their families have almost no risk to animal welfare (if the birds are harmed, they don’t eat), but can be incredibly hard to trace due to their small size and rural nature.

We have been able to add traceability in this supply chain by opening offices in these rural parts of the world where this supply chain resides that teach the collector communities how to read and write so the proper paperwork can always accompany the collection of the material. 

The collector based supply chain is important as it not only has almost zero risk of animal welfare issues, but provides some of the highest quality of material as the birds are much older and produce a large and strong down cluster.

Where each particular quality comes from

Even though the down we collect would otherwise be waste from the poultry industry, we feel it is our responsibility to also account for the welfare of the birds. There are two particular animal welfare issues that are endemic to our industry. The first is the horrific practice of live plucking, and the other is collecting material from birds that have been force fed for the Foie Gras industry. 

Live Plucking

The most egregious and shocking practice is the collection of material through the live plucking of the birds. Down is not unlike the undercoat of a dog which older birds will periodically shed or molt. This material, in the past, was collected by hand and referred to “hand collected” down. The down naturally shed by the birds can be extremely high quality with extremely large strong clusters. 

As certain farmers realized the value of this material, it degenerated into a practice where the down is picked from the birds, feathers and all, whether they are naturally shedding or not. This is extremely harmful to the birds and a practice we have always abhorred. 

Most birds in the industrial farms go to processing for food at between 6-8 weeks for Duck in China and 12-16 for Goose (both are slightly older in Europe). In the vast majority of the supply chain, there is no possibility for live plucking since the birds are so young at time of processing. Live plucking only has the possibility to happen on parent farms where the birds are allowed to live for several years. But even at that, there has only ever been evidence of this happening at White Goose Farms. So considering the global supply chain, it is 1/4 of a small percent of the total farms that is even at risk. It has been estimated that only 1-2% of the down supply chain is at risk for this practice. And the material collected will always test at 800 fill power or above. Because this is the higher value down, anything that is not white goose down above 800 fill power isn’t even at risk for this practice.

Force Feeding

The other practice we, at ALLIED, have long made a commitment to not source is from birds that have been force fed for the foie gras industry. At the end of their lives, these birds are forced to gorge on a diet of corn which makes their livers extremely fatty. Again, this is an exaggeration of a naturally occurring process whereby birds in the wild will overeat in anticipation of a long journey as they migrate. The practice of forcing the birds to feed, however, has become a practice that covers most duck supply chains through central Europe. ALLIED has made the commitment to never procure from farms that engage in this practice at any point throughout the year. 

Aside from those two unique issues we deal with, we continue to work with farms to improve the lives of the birds and constantly reconsidering what  “best practices” mean to animal husbandry.

Aside from those two unique issues we deal with, we continue to work with farms to constantly improve the lives of the birds and constantly reconsidering what  “best practices” mean to animal welfare organizations. 

Animal welfare shouldn’t only consider those issues of live plucking or force feeding. It is important that we, as an industry, help to move all animal welfare practices forward within this poultry supply chain and rethink what best practices for us mean. 

Working with animal welfare groups, auditing bodies and brands, we realize that any claims to animal welfare need to consider Brambel’s Five Freedom of Animal Welfare and not just solely, but in addition to, the two main issues we face as an industry. The RDS and subsequent standards now follow this model ensuring robust positive treatment of all animals in the down supply chain.

Brambel’s Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare. 

All animal welfare standards and certifications use Brambel’s Five Freedoms as a baseline toward the positive treatment of animals and consists of the following elements. 

“ALLIED has shown true leadership and has proven that regardless of a suppliers’ size, if they want to be cruelty-free they can. We call on all suppliers to follow ALLIED’s example and fully exclude down feathers from force-fed or live-plucked animals from their supply.

FOUR PAWS has called for prohibiting parallel production at the supplier level since the inception of those standards. We applaud ALLIED Feather and Down for being the first major processor to concur and understand the importance of such a measure,” – Melanie Lary, Four Paws

In 2014, the Responsible Down Standard, developed by The North Face and ALLIED, was published and gifted to Textile Exchange for use by the entire down industry. It’s robust requirements and auditing immediately set it up as one of the most significant animal welfare standards in the entire textile industry. Soon thereafter, other standards were launched and some that had existed prior were re-written to become much stronger. 

There are other small standards, but none with the scope and scale of the RDS. ALLIED does, however, work with brands to develop robust sourcing stories that exceed any existing certification. 

The Responsible Down Standard

Developed by ALLIED alongside The North Face and Control Union and gifted to Textile Exchange in 2014, the Responsible Down Standard stands as the most robust scalable animal welfare standard for down. It ensures that all material is traceable and sourced from farms audited to all Five Freedoms of animal welfare and prohibits the collection of material from  live plucked or force fed birds. No certified farm is allowed to engage in these practices whether down is sourced from those birds or not.

The RDS is based on the Content Claim Standard which means that all points of the supply chain – from hatchling farms through product manufacturing and distribution – require certification in order to label any product with the RDS logo. 

Click on the downloads to learn more about the labeling guidelines and current standard requirements and visit responsibledown.org for additional information and assets.

At ALLIED, we have always said that not all down is created equal. And what allows down to become such an incredible insulation lies in how the material was processed. Down can be sourced from some of the best – and even certified – farms, but how it is further processed is the difference between cheap down and feathers and a high quality, technical, sustainable and durable insulation. 

Down is comprised of beta-keratin, which is a protein extremely similar to our human hair. When down is processed, it needs to be treated in a way that provides the necessary cleanliness, but while still retaining a precise amount of the natural fat and oil so that it retains its resiliency so it can take years of extreme compression and still loft back to its full potential to provide warmth and comfort. There is a lot of cheaper down sourced in the market that might even come with RDS certification, but that has been processed with harsh chemicals, bleach and dried extremely fast. While this may save a small percentage in cost, the insulation may provide clean test results and even look good in the garment right away. But after just a little use, this harsh processing will have taken its toll and the product will quickly start to lose its loft as the now brittle clusters quickly degrade into fiber. 

This type of processing is also usually accompanied by the use of harsh chemicals that have extremely detrimental impacts on their local environments. The current down standards do not incorporate any form of chemical management so it is important to not only know where your down came from, but how it has been processed. 

ALLIED has developed a proprietary processing method called DURAWASH which has long led the industry in sustainable processing and stands as the benchmark of cleanliness as tested by an independent third party laboratory. The DURAWASH processing is incredibly complex and consists of no less than 13 stages that includes constantly being run through magnets to pick up any impurities, unique drying chambers that ensure we do not overheat the down, vortices that help to reduce additional residue and filter out the finest clusters and proprietary dedusting bins to ensure only the purest down is shipped. The DURAWASH process also incorporates a complex water filtration system to ensure we are able to recycle all the water we use. Part of this filtration is a purification which helps soften all water so minimal detergents can be used. The detergents ALLIED uses have been developed with our long time bluesign® chemical partner to precisely clean the down with no harm to the environment. 

In 2018, ALLIED was only the fourth company in the US to earn Palm Oil Free Certification.

Cleanliness, alongside fill power, is another important qualitative measurement currently used for down and measured through turbidity and oxygen tests. Clean down is incredibly important in that most people that have experienced an allergic reaction to down products are not reacting to the down itself, but dust and other allergens that can be present in unclean down. Clean down will also perform the best, realizing its warmth to weight potential. 

Turbidity

Turbidity testing measures the amount of “dirt” that remains on the down after washing. A given amount down is submerged in a predetermined amount of distilled water and agitated according to the standards protocol. The down is strained out and the water is transferred to a large tube with a marker inside. The turbidity represents the volume of water present that still allows for a clear reading of the mark. If the mark can not be read through more than 200mm of water, it would represent quite dirty material still and have significantly cloudy water present. But if the water is clear and the mark can still be read after 1000mm of water is filled in the cylinder, it would represent extremely clean material. 

Any measurement beyond 500mm is considered hypoallergenic. ALLIED material almost always registers beyond 1000mm where the testing stops.

Oxygen

Following the turbidity testing, the water used for that test is then subjected to oxygen testing in which it is determined how much organic matter remains in that water. Measurements are in 1.6 unit increments because that represents the volume of a droplet of agent used to determine the result. The more drops of the agent required to clear the liquid, the more organic matter is present. Anything under 10 is considered acceptable by the industry, but ALLIED material is almost always at 1.6. 

It’s important to note, however, that it still does not take into account fat and oil content which means one can use harsh chemicals to get the down very clean initially, but do so by stripping the fat and oil from the down cluster resulting in a “clean” down, but one that will break down very quickly. There is a reason ALLIED’s DuraWASH process involves so many steps and why we have extremely precise measurements for fat and oil we need to maintain in order to offer a high quality and long lasting insulation.

ALLIED Feather + Down have accredited down and feather testing laboratories in our facilities in Los Angeles and Hangzhou, China. The technicians are amongst the most experienced in the world with at least 20 years of down and feather testing with our primary technicians in California. 

Having accredited testing labs at our main facilities helps maintain the quality and cleanliness our partners have come to expect. Every raw material lot is tested for quality, content and banned substances that can occasionally be found in material collected from some regions (most often the result of a contaminated water supply). And at shipping, every production lot is further tested to ensure the highest quality material is being shipped for our partner brands. 

Our internal labs all provide the down and feather tests. 

Nomenclature and labeling are perhaps the most confusing communications around down. For labeling purposes, down is specified primarily through cluster % and then usually followed by fill power for marketing purposes. Species is usually specified for goose and left as simply “down” for duck down or a down blend that does not fit the requirements to be labeled as goose down. 

Different countries and regions also have differing requirements ranging from minimum % of species to passable fat and oil to fiber or feather content allowable. 

Cluster Ratio + Content Analysis

The cluster ratio you normally see is a percentage of down cluster to everything else. Normally, for ease of communication, this “other” is represented as feather. But in reality, a 90 / 10 down, for example, will actually have very little “feather” in it. Using a Montane lot and looking at the TrackMyDown.com report for lot number 13150315388, you can see in this 90 / 10 lot, we see 95.6% down cluster, 2.0% down fiber, 0.8% feather fiber, 1.5% waterfowl, 0.0% landfowl, 0.0% quill and 0.0% residue.

To explain the different elements, the content analysis is broken down as follows:

Labeling Requirements / Restrictions

There are many different region and country-specific requirements for appropriate labeling. The US standard, in general, is the most difficult requiring at least 95% goose for labeling as goose down (where in Europe as example, that could be as low as 85%). There are also limitations certain regions place on the different elements above. China, for example, limits the amount of feather that can be present.

For further comparisons and different standards and requirements, see the downloads below.

It is critically important to understand the best way to handle and store down. Too much humidity during storage of the bulk material can accelerate the growth of mold and cause significant and sometimes irreparable damage. Additionally, down needs to breath so we bag in breathable bags. This necessitates storage off the floor in order to keep it both clean and protected from foreign elements that could eventually find their way into the filled products. 

In 1987, a small family company was formed with the vision to provide the highest quality, innovative and responsibly sourced down to outdoor and apparel brands. To this day we’re still a family-run operation, and what started in a 12,000 square foot warehouse, has grown to over 1 million square feet with facilities in the US, China, Vietnam and opening soon in Europe.

From the beginning, ALLIED sought a new way of doing things. Thirty years ago, the down supply chain was a network of brokers with very little connection to the source. This practice still exists in many supply chains today. When Steve Uretsky founded ALLIED, he knew there was a better way to source and process what was then a generic ingredient. Strong relationships were formed directly with hatcheries and farms to ensure consistency with quality, price, and traceability. Washing processes were rethought leading to a method that would become more sustainable while setting new benchmarks for cleanliness. 

Working directly with the source has allowed ALLIED to develop industry-wide standards and leading traceability programs and tools, while also offering our partners an unparalleled level of support while working directly with animal welfare organizations. We are proud to have helped develop the Responsible Down Standard which has become one of the largest animal welfare standards in the entire textile industry. Our unique sustainable processing methods also allow us to recycle over 65 million gallons of water annually and led to ALLIED becoming the first down supplier to achieve the prestigious bluesign® system partner status in 2010. All down from ALLIED is now a bluesign® approved ingredient– one of the few non-textile based ingredients to have that status.

To this day we are still a family-run operation, and our goal has always been to make our customers and partners feel part of our family. Working with brands of every size, our sourcing practices, quality, innovations and consumer education tools such as TrackMyDown.com® offer every partner the tools and content to bring added value to every product using ALLIED down.

ALLIED will always continue to look forward, and look how down is purchased, used and marketed to new consumers. Through the three pillars of our brand – Quality, Innovation and Sustainability – ALLIED has and will continue to set the standard for quality insulations found inside the finest luxury and most technical outdoor brands worldwide.

ALLIED offers our partners global production options and unequaled diversity through ownership and operation of production facilities on three continents. Our global footprint not only allows us to be more diversified in times of crisis, but allows us to also reduce our overall environmental impact by saving on shipping and transportation. 

In addition to the down production capabilities in Anhui (China), Hangzhou (China), Hanoi (Vietnam), Kamyk (Czech Republic), Montreal (Canada) and our US headquarters just east of downtown Los Angeles, we also have sourcing offices throughout China and Europe as well as supply chain partners in Hungary and sales offices in Seoul, Korea and Tokyo, Japan. 

ALLIED also maintains full service bedding manufacturing facilities in Los Angeles, North Carolina, Montreal and Hangzhou through ALLIED Home.  

ALLIED is proud to have 50% female ownership and provides a diverse and inclusive work environment worldwide. We stand against racism in any form and work with local communities where our factories are located to provide work programs where we can, free bedding to shelters and when Covid took hold, free reusable masks to local fire departments and the homeless community. 

ALLIED Feather + Down has also made a commitment to global human rights by requiring affidavits signed by all vendors that no material in any ALLIED supply chain is directly or indirectly associated to the Xinjiang region or anywhere else that human rights are violated. 

From the DIY backpacker to The North Face, ALLIED is proud to work with partners both small and large and consider each equally important. Every one of ALLIED’s customers is considered a partnership – which is why we offer tools like TrackMyDown and other assets free of charge. We work together to provide the best pricing and quality and try to help advise on best timing as it can change season to season and even brand to brand. 

And as a family owned business, we still rely on the hand shake deals with no complicated contracts as a barrier to entry. When material is committed to, we buy, so in the rare case of a natural disaster or bird flu, the material needed is secured and locked in. Even in the largest periods of the bird flu or Covid-19, not a single partner has ever been shorted material that was committed.

View some of our partners here

From inception, ALLIED has stood as a leader in the industry setting important industry benchmarks, working towards developing the largest animal welfare standard in the industry and has received numerous awards from both the industry and our partner brands. 

• 1987 – ALLIED Feather + Down was started by Steve Uretsky as an insulation-focused brand. At the time, the growing outdoor market was serviced by bedding companies. Steve understood early the potential needs of down outerwear was different than the material used for comforters and pillows. ALLIED remains an insulation brand first and foremost. 
• 2008 – ALLIED becomes first down supplier to regularly audit farms for animal welfare requiring signed certificates by all supply chain vendors. 
• 2010 – ALLIED becomes first down supplier to receive prestigious bluesign system partner status. 
• 2010 – ALLIED works with Sierra Designs to develop DriDown, the first Water Resistant Down. 
• 2011 – ALLIED is the first supplier to enlist third party auditors to start building a certifiable supply chain for animal welfare. 
• 2013 – ALLIED begins pilot of the Responsible Down Standard alongside The North Face and Control Union. 
• 2014 – the RDS is gifted to the Textile Exchange in order to be used by anyone within the industry to better animal welfare practices across the globe. 
• 2014 – ALLIED is awarded TNF / VF Corp supplier of the year. 
• 2015 – ALLIED launches TrackMyDown so end users can learn more about the down inside their products. 
• 2015 – ALLIED is once again awarded TNF / VF Corp. supplier of the year. 
• 2015 – ALLIED wins prestigious ISPO Innovation Awards for portfolio of innovative down insulations. 
• 2016 – ALLIED honored as part of the Nike Premium Supplier Program
• 2017 – ALLIED announces 100% global supply chain certified to robust third party animal welfare standards. 
• 2017 – ALLIED again honored honored as part of  the Nike Premium Supplier Program
• 2018 – ALLIED, TNF and Control Union recipients of the 2018 “Together We are a Force” award in the sustainability category for the creation of The Responsible Down Standard. 
• 2018 – ALLIED again honored honored as part of  the Nike Premium Supplier Program
• 2019 – ALLIED wins coveted ISPO Gold Award for TrackMyDown in the sustainability category. 
• 2020 – ALLIED wins Outdoor Retailer Innovation award for Optix iMirror project. 
• 2021 – Redesign of TrackMyDown wins coveted German Design Council Award.

Unlike many of our competitors, ALLIED Feather + Down is first and foremost an insulation brand providing the highest quality and most sustainable insulation to technical and luxury outdoor and fashion brands. Most of the competition are bedding companies simply selling the same material used for duvets for use in outerwear. 

For ALLIED it is not one-size-fits-all. The quality of down needed for outerwear differs significantly in overall quality than that used for bedding. Bedding which requires a lot more material and uses much heavier fabric can have higher feather contents and does not need to be separated as thoroughly as the material going into a technical parka. 

To this day, ALLIED remains unique in that a majority of sales come through insulation. And we have leveraged our intimate and technical knowledge of down through two distinct bedding divisions in ALLIED Home and ALLIED Hospitality. 

ALLIED Home uses the same quality down going into the most luxurious and technical garments to fill retail bedding found in all major home goods retailers. ALLIED Home also employs ALLIED’s approach to quality, performance and sustainability, manufacturing in the US, Canada and out of our own facilities in China. 

ALLIED Hospitality utilizes the resources of ALLIED Home to craft luxurious and sustainable bedding for some of the finest hotels and resorts worldwide.