Smartwool’s “Second Cut Project” is helping keep old socks out of the landfill. Here’s how.

In celebration of Earth Day 2023, Smartwool is partnering with retailers across Canada to collect and recycle old socks and turn them into new goods, such as the Second Cut Hike Sock coming out later this month.

The Second Cut Project was launched in April 2021 and the pilot project of the Take Back event was last year. It worked so well that the company has collected over 740,000 socks to date from across North America.  This year the expansion of the project triples the number of collection bins across Canada.

British Columbians can return their socks from now until May 2, 2023 at Mountain Equipment Company locations across the province as well as other partipating dealers. A list of Canadian companies who are a part of the project can be found here. Alternatively, people can print a free shipping label from the company’s website here and mail the socks.

“As an outdoor brand, we must advocate for the planet and protect the spaces where we play,” says Alicia Chin of Smartwool’s Sustainability & Social Impact department. “Our employees are encouraged to get involved with our advocacy efforts as well as support sustainability actions in the office and at home, including recycling, composting, and biking to work.” She goes on to say, “Sustainability is a core part of the Smartwool brand and our culture. In addition to making our products more sustainable, we actively support environmental groups, including POW and CPAWS in Canada.”

For more about Smartwool’s partnership with the Material Return platform and how it collects and deconstructs old socks to turn them into new goods, visit: https://smartwool.ca/en/second-cut-recycle.html.

For a review about Smartwool socks and to learn how we managed to last almost an entire month in one pair without changing them, visit “27 Days in One Pair of Smartwool Socks.”