Lululemon Canada Promises More Sustainable Products Amid Controversies

Lululemon, a multinational premium athletic apparel retailer, has vowed to achieve about 75 percent sustainable materials for its products by 2025 amid controversies of greenwashing. Environment advocacy group Stand.earth has accused Lululemon of misleading and vague promises. It called on the French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) to investigate the company.

Stand.earth submitted its complaint to the French regulator days before the Paris Olympic Games opening ceremony. The environmental advocacy group accused Lululemon, which was the official supplier of kit to the Canadian Olympic team, of making disproportionate and ambiguous environmental claims through publicity.

It also highlighted Lululemon’s latest impact report which stated that the Vancouver-based retailer’s emissions nearly doubled in the past year. Stand.earth claimed that the company’s emissions will grow further. Todd Paglia, Stand.earth’s Executive Director, said Lululemon’s consumers have the right to know about the company’s true impacts on the environment.

Lululemon Committed to Environment, Sustainability

However, Lululemon said it is committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. With more than 700 stores in 20 countries, Lululemon has highlighted its ambition to design products for long-lasting performance, beauty and sustainability. The company, in an article, stated that uses better fibres, manufacturing processes, and innovative net materials.

It also engages with industry partners to help come up with collective solutions. Lululemon claimed that it assesses impacts through the Sustainable Apparel Coalition Higg Materials Sustainability Index and life-cycle analysis methodologists. It wants its materials to come from traceable sources for the betterment of the environment.

But Lululemon has been spotlighted by environmental advocacy groups for greenwashing. The groups have accused the retailer of using materials, polyester and nylon, produced from fossil fuels. However, Lululemon stands by its mission for net zero emissions by 2050.