Patagonia announced that it will manufacture a wetsuit made with 60% plant-based material. The plant-based biorubber is made from the flowering shrub guayule and it’s created by Yulex in Phoenix, Arizona.
Today, Patagonia released a ton of additional information about the suits. Here’s what the suit layers look like:
Cross-section of Patagonia’s plant-based wetsuit material.
Patagonia acknowledges that it’s not 100% plant-based, but that this is “just a first step” and its made clear that it wants to get to 100%. Patagonia also called on other brands to “join the effort to innovate and implement alternatives to traditional neoprene that is used in wetsuits.” I don’t know about you, but it’s refreshing to see a surf company innovating on the environmental aspect of its products and challenging others to do the same.
Patagonia hasn’t stated what the environmental savings are with using the Yulex material, or the footprint of making a wetsuit with the material, but it says it is working on that data. Stay tuned for more on this.
Look for these suits in the U.S. in Spring 2013.
Evergreen Sessions 