Under Armour’s 30% emissions reduction target across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 needs to be significantly increased to address the emissions’ problem of the company. It still has yet to set a coal phase out target, leaving it far behind other sportswear brands like PUMA who are leading in this area. The athletic brand’s renewable energy target for its own operations is a step forward, but it has yet to include renewables in its supply chain which is more meaningful. Under Armour still lacks transparency into its supply chain, and provides only minimal details on its supplier engagement, which it should address as a first priority.
Total Score
D-
Emissions
About the Scorecards
The fashion industry is responsible for 2- 8% of global emissions but are fashion brands doing enough to tackle their growing climate impact? The updated 2023 Fossil Free Fashion Scorecard analyses 43 fashion companies on their climate action.
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* Emissions breakdown not reported
Score Breakdown
GHG emissions:
Under Armour has committed to reduce absolute Scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions 30% by 2030 from a 2018 base year. The target is not in line with keeping warming below 1.5°C.
Renewable energy:
Under Armour has set a renewable energy target in its own operations of 100% by 2030 from a 2018 base year, but it is not clear whether the energy will be additional to the grid.
Under Armour has yet to set a target of 100% renewable energy for its supply chain by 2030, which is an essential step for decarbonising its manufacturing.
Coal phase out:
Under Armour has not publicly set a target to phase out coal-fired boilers from its supply chain by 2030 to reduce air pollution and cut emissions.
GHG emissions:
Under Armour publicly reports GHG emissions in its own operations, and in its supply chain. The company does not provide a full breakdown of its Scope 3 emissions.
Energy use:
Under Armour does not publicly report its energy use for its own operations, and does not provide a breakdown of its renewable energy use and how that energy is sourced.
For its supply chain, Under Armour does not publicly report its energy use, a breakdown of its suppliers’ renewable energy use and how that energy is sourced.
Suppliers:
Under Armour provides a partial supplier list to Tier 1.
Under Armour does not appear to provide its suppliers with training and resources or financial support to help them make energy efficiency improvements. The company does not require them to make energy savings as a condition of contract.
Under Armour does not require suppliers to reduce thermal coal demand in their manufacturing processes.
Under Armour does report providing its suppliers with training and resources to help them transition to renewable energy, including developing a Renewable Energy Playbook for its suppliers in 2020. The company does not report providing financial support or incentives to make the energy transition, and does not require suppliers to use renewable energy as a condition of contract.
Under Armour does require its Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers to disclose GHG emissions data and does require them to set GHG emissions reduction targets, but it does not require suppliers to provide facility level data via the Higg Index.
Under Armour has not made any commitments to phase out fossil fuel based materials.
Under Armour has not made a public policy to ban the sourcing of leather from the Amazon Biome or taken measurable steps to ensure that Amazon leather is not contributing to deforestation. The company claims to have processes in place to avoid leather sourced from deforested regions, including following best practices of the Leather Working Group, but Under Armour was found to be at high risk of sourcing leather from deforestation in the Amazon Biome according to the Nowhere to Hide report.
Low-carbon materials:
Under Armour has not committed to increasing closed-loop apparel-to-apparel recycling for synthetics and plant-based materials. The company committed to increasing the use of recycled polyester across product categories to at least 15% of sourced polyester by 2020, although the recycled material does not appear to be from textile waste. Under Armour has not committed to reduce the impact of its raw materials sourcing by switching to organic cotton or cotton sourced from regenerative agriculture by 2030, but it commits that 100% of cotton will come from low-impact sources.
Increasing circularity:
Under Armour is acting slowly to increase circularity and address overproduction by policies to improve the repairability, resale, durability and recyclability of its products by implementing its sustainability and circular design principles targeting products sold in Fall/Winter 2024 and extending the life of at least 75% of damaged and defective products by 2025, and is launching a roadmap to recyclability for apparel by 2030, but these targets are too distant. Under Armour needs to do more to reduce production and improve circularity now.
Under Armour does not publicly report its material mix, its volume of deadstock. But it does report how it manages or disposes of its deadstock to reduce waste.
Under Armour does not report its shipping emissions annually, does not provide a breakdown of its transportation methods, and does not have a target to reduce GHG emissions from transportation.
Under Armour does not have a policy to avoid aviation and commit to slower shipping methods such as maritime, rail and land. The company does not report having a near-term plan to ship its cargo via cleaner methods.
Under Armour has not committed to transitioning to zero emissions vessels (ZEV) by 2030. The company has not used its voice publicly to advocate for Zero Emission Shipping.
Under Armour has not committed to transitioning its last mile delivery to zero emission vehicles.
Although Under Armour is a member of RE100 and has joined the Fashion Pact’s Collective Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (CVPPA), the company has not engaged in any discernible renewable energy advocacy during the Scorecard period.