PFAS stands for polyfluoroalkyl substances, which is the name given to the broad family of products called perfluorinated compounds: man-made substances that appear in a huge array of household and care products due to their water and oil repelling properties.PFAS can take thousands of years to break down in the environment, giving them the nickname ‘forever chemicals’. Worryingly, they have been shown to be harmful to both human and environmental health. Learn more

On the side of all Nikwax WaterBased products is a statement that says “No propellant gases, non-persistent, environmentally safe. Not tested on animals. Contains no fluorocarbons”. Nikwax firmly believes in producing safe products and wherever possible, will not use components that have health or environmental concerns.

It means we use water to “carry” the waterproofing ingredients in the product. Anywhere that water can get into your footwear or clothing then so can the waterproofing, ie. it targets leaks. This allows the TX.10i waterproofing agent to envelope individual fibers in the material, resulting in a water repellent finish. Using water also means we are not using harmful chemical solvents. Our products are completely safe for the user and the environment. WaterBased products are much more concentrated than others, therefore you get more waterproofing for your money. WaterBased products are EASIER to use, they are SAFER to use and keep you DRIER.

Nikwax first started looking at Fluorocarbons many years ago. We have continued to test Fluoropolymers in the laboratory because they do have desirable qualities such as oil repellency. However, competitors’ fluoropolymer care products have shown to be vulnerable to abrasion and pressure.

In the past 4 years evidence has come out that components and the potential breakdown products from fluoropolymers are highly persistant in the environment and in human tissue. Those chemicals have also proven to produce cancers in rats at extremely low concentrations. Nikwax considers that the use of such products in the domestic environment is an unacceptable risk and that there are safer routes to achieving durable water-repellency.

Please refer to this link for more information: Fluorocarbons (PFCs)

Even though some manufacturers claim their products are environmentally friendly, the propellants used are still powerful greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming. The solvents used are highly flammable and will contribute to greenhouse gases. Over 90 % of what the user buys inside the aerosol can, evaporates into the atmosphere and has no positive effects towards increasing water repellency. In contrast Nikwax WaterBased products contain much higher concentrations of waterproofing agents (up to 35 %), meaning less frequent applications, less waste and substantially less harm to the environment. We also seek to improve the recyclability of our packing to reduce waste.

There is no standard definition for a nanoparticle. However, one generally accepted measure is as follows:

“A particle having one or more dimensions of the order of 100 nanometres or less”. A nanometre is one billionth of a metre.

Nanoparticles are everywhere. When you smell ocean spray, you are breathing in nanoparticles. Clay is made up of nanoparticles. A cup of coffee contains nanoparticles.

The worry is about ‘novel’ nanoparticles. These are materials that have been synthesised or manufactured that previously did not occur in nature. An example would be carbon nano tubes. An especial worry would be the distribution of these kinds of particles in air or water, which might allow them to be ingested into the human body, with unpredictable results.

Propellant driven solvent based sprays can produce airborne nano particles, because an extremely fine mist is produced. On evaporation of solvent in the air, the mist particles become even smaller. The active ingredients delivered by solvent based sprays can be dispersed as nano particles small enough to pass through airways into the lungs.

Liquid polymer dispersions that are translucent, that is, see-through, also contain nanoparticles. So the active ingredients within translucent water-based fluorocarbon liquids are primarily present as nanoparticles.

Nikwax water-based consumer products are white opaque liquids with an average particle size usually between 1 and 2 microns. That is ten times bigger than the largest nanoparticle. However, a small proportion of the emulsion will be in the nano range. As soon as Nikwax is diluted with water, or the water evaporates from it, the emulsion particles aggregate, that is, join together and get bigger.. Therefore there is an extremely low risk with Nikwax products that novel nano particles will be dispersed into water or air through their use.

Nikwax water-based spray products are delivered from a trigger spray and are not gas driven. Therefore the particle size that is dispersed into the air is relatively very large compared to a gas propellant driven aerosol, and is not nanoparticle size. Nikwax trigger driven sprays therefore present low risk in terms of inhalation and the possibility of materials entering through the airways and into the lungs. Care should, however always we taken to avoid inhalation of any spray material, including Nikwax.

Yes. Stain Scrub is free from harmful chemicals and bleaching agents, and it is not harmful to aquatic life.

As part of our CMS, we have developed a comprehensive Manufacturing Restrictive Substances List (MRSL) that restricts the input of hazardous chemicals into our manufacturing processes and our products. This also require all our suppliers to sign a declaration that the goods they supply us with comply with our MRSL. Finally, we undertake annual wastewater testing at our manufacturing facility to verify compliance.

Net Zero is a state achieved when human-generated greenhouse gas emissions are significantly reduced, and the remaining emissions have been removed through emission removal methods.

At Nikwax, we follow the Science Based Target initiatives guidance on Net Zero, which means aiming to reduce our emissions by at least 90%. The remaining emissions are removed by carbon removal methods, leaving zero emissions.

Emission scopes are different categories of emissions, as defined by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol – the global standard by which both corporate and government emissions are reported. There are 3 categories of emissions:

GHG Scope 1 emissions: direct emissions from sources we own or control, such as company-owned cars.

GHG Scope 2 emissions: indirect emissions from the energy we purchase, such as electricity.

GHG Scope 3 emissions: indirect emissions from all other sources within our value chain, such as purchased goods and services.

Whilst we are making every effort to reduce our emissions, some are unavoidable or very challenging to reduce. We have therefore chosen to support the World Land Trust in their Carbon Balanced programme by purchasing carbon credits for the direct emissions we aren’t able to impact. By doing this, we are financing vital conservation work in countries including Vietnam, Ecuador and Guatemala, whilst moving closer to achieving our Net Zero scope 1 and 2 emissions targets.

We always look to material evidence to inform our decisions. Plastic is not a perfect material, and we regularly review whether there is evidence to suggest better alternatives.

Our decision to continue using recycled plastic is based on research carried out by the European Outdoor Group’s ‘Single Use Plastic Project’. After reviewing a huge array of evidence and peer reviewed lifecycle studies, they published a report on single use plastics and their alternatives. This report evidences that recycled plastic is the preferred material in almost every aspect – apart from its end of life treatment – hence why we use recycled plastic that is also recyclable.

We encourage all Nikwax customers to recycle our bottles and give them a second life.

We undertake an annual review of our plastic use based on our annual purchases. We use either the plastic weight provided by our suppliers, or we measure this internally to determine a weight for each item. Our report covers plastic use across our operations, from our packaging to our plastic use in our offices, such as tea bags and pens.

Yes, alongside our annual plastic use audit we always review where we can make changes to either eliminate plastic alltogether or swap to recycled plastic alternatives.

We work with the World Land Trust (WLT) by supporting their Carbon Balanced programme, which funds REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) projects around the world. Working with environmental organisations on the ground, WLT provides a vital lifeline to threatened habitats. You can learn more about WLT’s Carbon Balanced programme here.

The European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA) provides different levels of membership to the outdoor brands that support it. As a vital Sustaining Member, we donate an extra €10,000 a year on top of our membership fee to cover EOCA’s all-important operational costs. This ensures EOCA can continue supporting hands-on conservation projects worldwide.

It means that our company is owned by us, the employees. We are proud to all be Partners with an equal share in a thriving business.

Our company has always had a strong environmental and social ethos, and in 2022 we transitioned to employee-ownership to embed these values further, ensuring they can never be compromised.

All Nikwax products are manufactured in Wadhurst, East Sussex in the UK.

We hold multiple standards certifying our operations and manufacturing practices.

We are System Partners, members of Sedex – the social auditing platform, and hold a number of ISO standards; 14001 Environmental Management, 9001 Quality Management, and 45001 Health and Safety. We have also signed up to the UN’s Race to Zero campaign and have set ourselves a validated near-term science-based target with the Science Based Target initiative.