Our Impact

Producing clothing affects the environment, and keeping garments in use for longer is one of the most effective ways to reduce that impact (Source: WRAP, Valuing Our Clothes). That is why we focus on timeless design and put our products through lab testing before they reach the market - including pilling resistance (ISO 12945-1), abrasion resistance (ISO 12947-2), dimensional stability (ISO 5077/ISO 6330) and colour fastness.

Testing is run in our own laboratory in Shanghai, with some additional tests run by accredited third-party laboratories. We also share wash, care and repair guidance to help you get more wears out of what you already own.

Beyond our products, we share knowledge and inspiration on activity and wellbeing, and support events and communities that make it easier for more people to get outdoors.

Johaug is part of Active Brands. You can read more about our work in the value chain, our due diligence practices and our focus areas at www.activebrands.com/sustainability

Wool is one of our most used natural fibers - for many good reasons: It insulates when damp, helps regulate temperature and resists odour, which is why it performs well for cross-country skiing and training in cold conditions. As part of Active Brands, we have been certified to the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) since 2024 (certificate IDFL TE-00118857, issued by IDFL, valid to 19.06.2027). RWS is owned by Textile Exchange. It verifies wool animal welfare and land management requirements and tracks it from farm to final product. Only the products which carry the RWS label and claim are certified.

We strongly oppose mulesing, including freeze branding, and require that none of our merino comes from sheep subjected to these procedures. For RWS-certified wool, this is verified through the standard's third-party audits. For merino that is not RWS certified, we rely on non-mulesed declarations from our suppliers, issued on International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO) documentation and tracked through declaration forms across our supply chain.

A lot of training wear is made from polyester. We use it because of what it does: it is strong, lightweight, quick-drying and helps a garment hold its shape and performance through repeated use, movement and washing. In Autumn/Winter 2025, as part of Active Brands, we were certified to the Global Recycled Standard and the Recycled Claim Standard (certificate IDFL TE-00118857, issued by IDFL, valid to 19.06.2027). Both verify recycled content and track it through the supply chain, and GRS also sets environmental and social requirements for manufacturing. Only the products which carry the GRS/RCS label and claim are certified.

We are aware that recycled polyester is not the finish line. Questions remain about where recycled inputs come from, about microfibre shedding during use and washing, and about what happens to synthetic garments at end of life. We treat it as one step, and keep following developments in textile-to-textile recycling and in design that supports longer product life.

We use down in selected outerwear products for its lightweight and insulation properties. This down is of course sourced from ducks and geese. To support our approach to animal welfare, we require our down suppliers to be certified according to the Responsible Down Standard (RDS). This certification sets requirements that prohibit practices such as live-plucking and force-feeding, and compliance is verified through third-party audits. The RDS framework also includes animal welfare criteria aligned with the Five Freedoms, first set out by the UK Farm Animal Welfare Council and now widely referenced in international animal welfare frameworks:

• Freedom from hunger, thirst and malnutrition

• Freedom from discomfort

• Freedom from pain, injury and disease

• Freedom to express normal behaviour

• Freedom from fear and distress

Our suppliers are required to follow our chemical agreement. As a baseline, this requires compliance with applicable international and national law, including REACH, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, the Biocidal Products Regulation, the California Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act and the California Safer Clothes and Textiles Act. Beyond that baseline, we maintain a Restricted Substances List (RSL) setting out substances that are restricted or prohibited in our products, and suppliers must comply with it. As bluesign System Partners, we work with other actors in the textile value chain to implement the bluesign system, and we prioritise working with suppliers that are also bluesign System Partners. The bluesign Input Stream Management protocol requires that chemical products and raw materials used at bluesign System Partner suppliers meet bluesign criteria, and bluesign's third-party on-site inspections verify compliance and monitor resource use.

Materials and product categories go through a testing cycle every 24 months to monitor for hazardous chemicals. Testing takes account of material content, risk and supplier, and materials without certification are treated as higher risk. This helps us verify that materials meet our internal chemical standards.

Our climate targets are set as part of Active Brands, using SBTi methodology. You can find the targets, the methodology behind them and our annual progress in the Active Brands ESG report.

Most of our emissions sit outside our direct control, in the supply chain. In 2025 we collected primary energy data from around 90% of our direct suppliers, and 76% of those suppliers reported using renewable energy to some extent. Our main levers are changing our use of raw materials, phasing out coal in material manufacturing, supporting suppliers in adopting cleaner energy, and working with suppliers and peers on renewable energy and energy efficiency. In 2021, through Active Brands, we joined the Scandinavian Textile Initiative for Climate Action (STICA), a network of more than 50 textile companies working to align the industry with a 1.5°C pathway.

Our policies are based on internationally recognised standards, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the conventions of the International Labour Organization. These cover principles such as equal pay, fair compensation and working conditions. We monitor so-called zero-tolerance issues and require corrective action where violations are identified. We also expect workers to receive overtime compensation and regular breaks in line with applicable laws and standards. These rights should be standard, but they are not always consistently upheld across the industry.

We have built a stable supply chain over the years, and when we enter new partnerships we aim to establish long-term relationships. This supports accountability and transparency with our key suppliers. We do not own our manufacturing sites, but we have direct relationships with most of our garment assembly and material suppliers. We are in ongoing dialogue with them and review key performance indicators at least twice a year, covering social, labour and environmental topics. Our parent company Active Brands shares the locations of key suppliers, including assembly partners, through Open Supply Hub.

We set expectations for our own operations and for our business partners in areas such as legal compliance, labour standards, human rights and environmental practices. As part of Active Brands, we are a member of amfori. Through its Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI), factories are assessed and assigned ratings from A to F, and those ratings inform how often follow-up assessments take place - higher-rated factories are typically assessed less frequently than those requiring improvement. We do not approve factories rated lower than C, and we work with suppliers on corrective actions where needed. Where a factory receives a C rating, we conduct annual inspections to support improvement.

We are also signatories to the International Accord for Health and Safety in the Garment and Textile Industry, a legally binding agreement between brands and trade unions on worker health and safety.

Our production is located primarily in Southeast Asia. To stay close to it, we have an office in Shanghai with a team of around 30 people who conduct inspections and worker interviews, support quality assurance and maintain supplier relationships.

Through Active Brands, we are a member of Ethical Trade Norway. The organisation provides guidance, training and tools on responsible business practices, including human rights and supply chain due diligence. Through them we receive support on ESG priorities, take part in training and working groups, and access resources that inform our approach to risk assessment, supplier engagement and long-term goal setting. Ethical Trade Norway has also supported the development of our code of conduct, which is aligned with internationally recognised standards.

Traceability is central to understanding where and how our materials and garments are produced, and we have worked to strengthen our traceability systems in recent years. We use third-party standards such as bluesign, as well as certified materials including RWS wool and GRS/RCS-certified recycled materials in selected products. These systems support our efforts to source materials against defined environmental and social criteria. Our parent company, Active Brands, publishes annual ESG reports covering sustainability-related topics and performance. In 2022 Norway introduced the Transparency Act, which requires companies of our size to report on their work to safeguard human rights and decent working conditions across their value chains. Active Brands meets this obligation, and as part of the work we have reviewed internal policies and procedures, developed a Responsible Business Conduct Policy, and carried out updated risk assessments in our value chain.

The benefits of being active go beyond the physical. Regular physical activity is associated with better mental health, including reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression (Source: World Health Organization, Physical activity fact sheet, 2024). With our gear, we aim to promote an active lifestyle and to be a long-term dependable part in women’s training. Johaug wants to make you feel the best while giving it your all.