Patagonia Partners With Samsung to Take on Microplastic Pollution — Retail Bum

Outdoor retailer Patagonia and electronics company Samsung are working together to develop an effective and scalable solution that can reduce the number of microplastics that are produced from textiles and laundry.

As part of the initiative, one of the solutions the two companies are working on is developing a new washing machine that can deliver high-performance cleaning while still reducing the number of microplastics released in each wash cycle.

Microplastics are released into the environment across the lifecycle of products made using synthetic fabrics, such as fleece sweaters, nylon jackets, and spandex yoga pants.

While add-on filters for washing machines and protective laundry bags are some of the solutions that are currently available to help capture some of the microplastics that are released during washing, these solutions do not go far enough to combat the problem fully.

Microplastics today pose a severe challenge to the environment and human health, with studies showing that more than 80% of tap water samples collected from across the globe were found to have microplastics in them. Their ingestion can lead to a host of health problems, such as neurotoxicity, DNA damage, and inflammation, among other things.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, humans ingest the equivalent of one credit card per week through the air they breathe and the water they consume.

Let that sink in.

Originally published at https://retailbum.com on January 17, 2023.