"What kind of footprint do you leave?" That's the question that will be stamped on Timberland’s new eco-friendly shoe boxes, slated to roll out along with their fall line. It's part of the company's evolving initiative to raise packaging standards for the footwear industry. (We happen to know that Timberland-owned Mi?çn, which has been using green packaging from the start, was a test run for the company as a whole. Guess it worked!) The new boxes will be made of 100% post- consumer recycled materials, printed with soy-based inks, and manufactured with water-based solvents. They will also come complete with the "Our Footprint" label, which lets customers know where the shoes were made and what sort of environmental and community standards the company follows. Timberland even fesses up to using only five percent renewable energy.
The road to recovery starts with admitting you have a problem, and it looks like Timberland is well on its way. Hopefully, their success will encourage other shoe companies to follow suit, because, let’s be honest, the whole industry could use some eco-rehab.
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