MUD jeans: circular denims (almost) never die

MUD Jeans
Type of organisation or company
Country
Netherlands
City
Laren
Language for original content
Key Area
Project elaborated in partnership
No
Submitted by
MUD Jeans
Start/End date
Ongoing
Yes
Type of funding
Description

MUD Jeans is a circular jeans brand applying a circular production model. Customers can lease or buy MUD jeans, and return these to have them recycled into new denim products. MUD also offers a free repair service.

When customers no longer wear their jeans, they can send them back to MUD. Consumers receive a discount on a new pair when they hand in an old pair. Non-MUD jeans are also accepted, the only condition being that the jeans must be at least 96% cotton.

When old (MUD) jeans are sent back to the firm, a small quality check is carried out: if they are still in good condition, they are given a second life through MUD's vintage program. If they are irreparably worn out or from another brand, jeans are mechanically recycled at MUD's recycle factory  (recover@).

Fibers then go to MUD's fabric manufacturer, Tejidos Royo. Here the fibers are mixed with organic GOTS certified cotton and yarn is spun from it. The yarns are dyed and woven into fabrics. The resulting fabrics contain between 23-40% post-consumer recycled cotton fibers.

The fabrics go to MUD's jeans manufacturer, Yousstex International, where they are cut, sewn into jeans and washed.

Main results

MUD jeans have clear environmental benefits:

  • Only 4 different types of fabrics, one type of material for buttons and rivets and one type of stitching yarn are used to manufacture MUD jeans.
  • MUD products are easily recyclable. They contain between 23-40% of post-consumer recycled cotton, supplemented with global organic textile standard (GOTS) cotton.
  • Circular production techniques are used throughout the supply chain.
  • MUD jeans are not "washed", but techniques such as laser and ozone are used to minimize water consumption. The indigo dye is Cradle 2 Cradle certified.
  • 78% water and 61% CO2-eq per jeans are saved compared to industry standards. This has allowed MUD to save 300 million liters of water and to avoid the emission of 700,000 kilos of CO2 in the last 3 years.