Ethical Yacht Wear is proud to announce the latest milestone in its mission to promote cleaner oceans and a more sustainable yachting industry.
Turning The Plastic Tide
The yacht crew uniform company, developed by crew for crew, is proud to unveil its latest achievement in supporting ocean cleanup. Through its profits, Ethical Yacht Wear has now sponsored the removal of the equivalent of one million plastic bottles from the oceans.
As the sustainability topic continues to move up the agenda and shape the conversation within the superyacht industry, increasingly tangible solutions have come to market to help pave the way to a better future. Within this sphere are those to help tackle the pressing and persistent issue of plastic pollution.
The global campaign to gain control of plastic waste is one of the fastest-growing environmental causes. Yet, up to 12.7 million metric tonnes of plastic is still estimated to enter the ocean each year (World Population Review 2024).
Ethical Yacht Wear is at the forefront of contributing to helping change this. It is committed to ocean cleanup initiatives and provides solutions. The company offers various ranges of eco-friendly yacht crew uniforms and additional accessories. Making its impactful mark and providing better options for the superyacht industry, it is also helping improve the broader fashion sector, one of the world’s worst industries on the planet environmentally speaking.
Double-Edged Mission
Recognizing that providing solutions is not enough, the company facilitates a two-part system to remove plastics. Firstly, they sponsor the removal of plastic from the oceans, facilitated through the Plastic Bank – a social fintech organization. This is done through a system of plastic exchange that underlines the true economic value of what is destroying our oceans and environment.
A proportion of Ethical Yacht Wears’ profits is given to the Plastic Bank, which funds people in poorer coastal communities to retrieve plastic from the marine environments while benefiting from a steady income. Therefore reducing plastic, at the same time as reducing poverty.
Secondly, the company considers a circular business model throughout its practices and processes, only supplying uniforms made with 100% organic cotton or recycled material. Such recycled material comes from the removal of the plastic which is melted into pellets and woven into the yarn. This fabric is then used in some of the company’s uniform lines such as their Eco Hybrid Shorts and Eco Hybrid Skorts lines.
“I launched the company because of my love for the ocean. I wanted to give back and use business as a force of good. I am extremely proud of our consistent commitment and effort in supporting ocean cleanup. This achievement in plastic cleanup in collaboration with our clients and the Plastic Bank is huge, and we are determined to continue making a positive impact and showing people and the industry that there is a better way.”
Lauren Wardley, founder of Ethical Yacht Wear.
A Bigger Picture
While this is tackling plastics, what about the issue of microplastics? Microplastics (measuring less than 5 millimeters) are entering our oceans through various sources. There is a huge list of consumer and commercial products with microplastics in them, and additionally, a large percentage of microplastic pollution comes from everyday laundry practices.
Ethical Yacht Wear understands the magnitude of such a problem, which is why they now provide filters for washing machines. These filters attach to washing machines onboard yachts to catch the microfibres that release when washing uniform from entering the drain and, therefore, the ocean.
Leading Change
Like with all environmental issues, a lot is riding on the global response and solutions. Combining its circular economy model, social impact initiatives, and product innovations, Ethical Yacht Wear is setting the bar high for others in the yachting industry to follow.
As they celebrate this significant cleanup milestone, the company remains committed to continue to support ocean cleanup and conservation efforts while working to provide more solutions to steer the industry toward a greener future.
To find out more about the company’s values and products, head to the website or contact Lauren directly at [email protected]