We always enjoy getting emails from consumers searching for knowledge!
Helping you learn about down and feather as a recycled natural material that is sustainable and ethically sourced is one of our mandates.
It’s a buyer beware world….. a consumer’s greatest asset is themselves when it comes to preparing to buy any purchase! Do your due diligence and know what’s important.
When buying food, you read the labels and research ingredients. If the food contains something that you don’t want to have, you don’t buy it.
When buying a car, you read the details sheet and look at actual track records for performances. If the car isn’t known to last, you look at another one.
So why wouldn’t you do the same for your bedding or apparel?
You spend over a third of your life in bed so it should be an environment which helps you attain sound sleep.
You need outerwear which will keep you warm against the outdoor elements and protect you so you are not vulnerable to damage from cold.
So, starting at the beginning, what do you need to know about down and/or feather material used as a product fill?
1. Down & Feathers are natural to waterfowl but the birds are not grown for harvesting the down. They are grown as food in the poultry industry. In fact, the down and feathers are recovered afterwards and recycled using strict cleaning regulations into a very warm, sustainable and ethical new fill material.
2. Only Ducks and Geese are used as down and feather sources for new fill material in bedding and apparel. If you find something labelled as chicken feathers, this is not the same thing at all.
3. Down and Feather processing is Government controlled by each country where that process is being done. There are stringent rules for what can be used and what conditions must be met to be safe for use. And in many cases like here in Canada, processing is often voluntarily held to stricter allowances than required to render the material hypo-allergenic.
4. Labelling of finished products is also Government controlled. There is mandatory information that Canadian Manufacturers must have listed on all “New Materials” tags for it to be legal for use by consumers. If you find something that is not labelled with an official Government tag… Return it immediately.