Icebreaker rolls out plastic-free packaging

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Icebreaker, the New Zealand clothing company that has its U.S. headquarters in Portland, announced Thursday that their new sock packaging will include some new sustainability features including the absence of plastic.

For its Fall/Winter 2010 line, Icebreaker socks will no longer be packaged with plastic pins, instead they will come with a cardboard wrap pack that's easy to open and close.

"Retail staff hate trying to repackage socks after consumers have removed the banit pin to try them on, and discarded banit pins usually end up in landfills," officials said in a company release. The company also kicked off a friendly inter-office competition to demonstrate, via Web video, how easy the packaging is to handle.

Other sustainability features include:

— Reduction of the paper used in its socks' packaging, and converting inner cartons used in shipping to recyclable bio bags. Shipping boxes have been replaced with biodegradable starch-based bags.

— The new sock packaging is printed with vegetable-based ink on paper stock accredited by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). The packaging is printed close to the U.S. factory when the socks are manufactured, to reduce unnecessary freight.

— Redesigned sock and accessory retail fixtures have been redesigned to use 30 percent less material and hold twice as much stock, and are shipped flat to take up less freight space.