Lululemon to Be Grilled Over Goose-Down Sourcing Claims at Annual Meeting

PETA Calls for End to Cruelly Produced, Environmentally Devastating Down Jackets

For Immediate Release:
June 1, 2016

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

All down comes from birds who are killed in a violent, painful way: That’s the message that PETA, as a lululemon shareholder, will bring to the athletic apparel company’s annual meeting on Thursday. PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear”—will question lululemon’s misleading claims about down and demand that the company stop selling the cruelly produced and environmentally unsound product.

In its statement, PETA notes that many birds killed for down are improperly stunned before their throats are cut and are still conscious when they’re dumped into a scalding-hot defeathering tank. As much as 15 percent of farmers’ profits come from the sale of feathers, making down a highly profitable co-product of the food industry. Goose farms also produce massive amounts of manure and slaughter waste—which pollutes the air, water, and land—and the meat industry is a leading producer of the greenhouse-gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

“For every down-filled jacket on lululemon’s shelves, birds died terrifying deaths in pollutant-spewing slaughterhouses,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is calling on lululemon to be a compassionate and environmentally conscious company and exclusively use modern synthetics.”

Modern, high-tech synthetics are widely available, including at lululemon, which already offers some PrimaLoft-filled jackets. Today’s synthetic materials come in environmentally friendly options and are often made with recycled materials. These cruelty-free options are warm, cozy, and allergen-free. They also don’t collect dust and mold, like down does, and even insulate when wet.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.