“Our FOREVER. BETTER. sustainability strategy aims to make PUMA better across the entire value chain, whether it comes to materials, carbon emissions, circularity... We know there is still a lot of work to be done, but we are encouraged by the progress we are making.”

ANNE-LAURE DESCOURS, CHIEF SOURCING OFFICER AT PUMA

Materials

7 out of 10 products made in 2022 included a significant part of components made from recycled materials, like recycled polyester or recycled cotton or materials from certified sources or improved manufacturing practices. More than half of the polyester used in PUMA’s apparel and accessories came from recycled materials, and we also started to scale up the use of recycled cotton. In 2022, 100% of all leather, 99.8% of all cotton and 99% of all paper and carboard packaging used by PUMA were sourced from certified sources such as Leather Working Group certified leather, cotton coming from farms with better farming practices, FSC Certified or recycled paper and carboard. Since 2017, we have been able to reduce PUMA’s CO2 emissions from materials by 32%. And despite a significant growth in sales, our overall CO2 emissions reduced by 7%.

In the area of circularity, we made progress with our FOREVER BETTER experiments RE:SUEDE, which tests for a biodegradable sneaker, and RE:FIBRE, which aims to scale up more advanced polyester recycling technologies. Both projects continue in 2023.

Climate action
In terms of Climate Action, we continued to power our own offices, stores, and warehouses with 100% green electricity and added 93 electric cars to our PUMA car fleet. We introduced the first ever electric truck at our logistics center in the US and agreed with our global logistics service provider, Maersk, to start using biofuels for the shipping of PUMA products. Our core suppliers increased their share of renewable energy to 11%.

Our suppliers increased the use of renewable energy in the supply chain too, where most of PUMA’s carbon emissions originate. Through the installation of large-scale solar power systems at selected suppliers and the purchase of renewable energy certificates, our core suppliers, which represent approximately 80% of our production volume, more than doubled their consumption of renewable energy in just one year.

By 2025, PUMA aims to more than double this figure once again and encourage our core suppliers to source at least a quarter of their energy needs from renewable sources.

CASE STUDY－PUMA supplier opted for efficient dyeing machines

Far Eastern New Century (FENC) Corporation Kuan Yin Dyeing & Finishing Plant in Taiwan has replaced the conventional dyeing machines with 19 sets of low liquor ratio dyeing machines along with installation of a high-efficiency boiler. With a 2.1% decrease in yearly production volume and a 15% increase in grid electricity prices since summer 2022, the dyeing mill has managed to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 10%, which is approx. 1,800 tCO2e. This is a 29% reduction in greenhouse gas intensity as compared to 2021. Their overall energy cost only increased 4.9%. Apart from the greenhouse gas reduction and cost control, they have achieved a significant 11.5% reduction in water consumption as compared to 2021, which is an absolute saving of 54,000 m3 of fresh water. This has resulted in less wastewater and hence less sludge from wastewater treatment plants. As a result of this, the mill has reduced 8% solid waste, which is around 84 tons per year.

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