Nordic Sleep sustainability update – Autumn 2024

It has now been four years since we began our sustainability journey, and we are pleased to share both the progress we have made and the challenges we continue to address. Here is a snapshot of our work so far:

The Nordic Sleep by Fossflakes pillow: strong environmental performance

We conducted a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of our best-selling pillow and had the results validated by independent experts. To our surprise, the Nordic Sleep by Fossflakes pillow performed better than a comparable down pillow in 16 out of 18 environmental impact categories.

It also showed:

33% lower CO₂ emissions
131 litres less water consumption
90% lower land use

Encouraged by these results, we are setting new targets to further reduce our environmental footprint.

Moving closer to lower-impact filling materials

Material selection has the greatest influence on the environmental footprint of our products. Transitioning to recycled polyester is therefore an important milestone on our path towards reducing impact.

However, identifying reliable suppliers that can deliver consistent high quality takes time, and we are continuing to expand our supplier base. At the same time, we are evaluating opportunities related to biodegradable polyethylene, which shows promising potential. We hope to share further developments in the coming year.

Challenges in developing a take-back system

Circular economy initiatives are becoming increasingly important across our industry. We would like to reuse our products at end-of-life and recycle or recover their materials wherever possible.

Despite our ambitions, progress on establishing a return system has been limited so far, as implementation is complex and resource-intensive. We remain committed to exploring solutions as industry infrastructure evolves, although we expect progress in this area to take time.

Factory waste: a small but complex challenge

Our factory generates only a limited amount of production waste—which, somewhat unexpectedly, creates its own challenge. The volumes are currently too small to be attractive for external recycling partners.

We are therefore working to identify innovative ways to reuse these materials internally, and this remains an active priority within our product development roadmap.

Minimal use of air freight

Careful planning has allowed us to almost eliminate the use of air freight in recent years. 2024 is no exception.

So far this year, only a small volume of products has been shipped by air to support new customers requiring urgent stock replenishment.

Responsible cotton sourcing: a necessary decision

As part of our commitment to sourcing cotton produced under responsible working conditions, we now work exclusively with BSCI-certified suppliers.

Unfortunately, one of our suppliers discontinued its annual audit programme, and we therefore decided to end the collaboration. While difficult, decisions like this are necessary to maintain a responsible supply chain.

Invitation to speak at the UN Global Compact Network Denmark

Autumn is conference season, and we were honoured to speak at a sustainability reporting event hosted by UN Global Compact Network Denmark, attended by 130 small and medium-sized enterprises.

During the event, we encouraged companies to take leadership in ESG initiatives rather than placing responsibility solely on consumers. We also highlighted the importance of external expertise in supporting progress and emphasised the value of Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) as a tool for replacing assumptions with data and building a solid foundation for sustainability programmes.

Full report coming in spring 2025

Stay tuned for our 2024 Sustainability Report, to be published in early 2025, where we will share additional insights, updates and priorities for the year ahead.

Read the Fossflakes Sustainability Report 2024 here