Water

The source of life

Water supports our planet’s natural ecosystems and is essential to nearly every industrial process. It’s a precious and scarce resource. At VF, we operate in many water-stressed regions. Producing apparel and footwear can be a water-intensive process. Cotton cultivation, leather production and dye house operations are responsible for the most water use across our supply chain. Our Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, accounting for 80% of our Tier 1 and 2 spend, withdrew approximately 88 million m3 of water in 2024.

Our water stewardship approach prioritizes three principles:

  • Water Efficiency: At the facility level, suppliers are encouraged to reduce freshwater use through more efficient water-management practices and by using recycled or gray water. Based on 2024 data reported by in-scope Tier 1 and Tier 2 supplier facilities, 24,757,944 m3 of recycled or gray water and 59,456,312 m3 of freshwater were used annually. Additionally, 42 suppliers collect rainwater for production and domestic use. Wet processing facilities often use recycled wastewater for domestic purposes, washing or dark color dyeing.
  • Water Quality: Supplier factories utilizing process water that is discharged to the environment must regularly conduct wastewater testing. VF’s Global Wastewater Standards require all authorized facilities to test based on average daily wastewater generated and effluent discharge type, enabling us to have more oversight of our supply chain to help reduce the potential of negative impacts of wastewater.
  • Water as a Human Right: We believe access to clean water and sanitation is a basic human right that can be a challenge to access for communities near many of our supplier factories. Through our WCD program, we’re helping to bring safe drinking water to these communities. 

Understanding Water Risks and Opportunities

We take a rigorous approach to measure and understand water use in our supply chain. In 2023, VF completed a water risk assessment of our global supply chain, covering 300+ Tier 1 and 700+ Tier 2 supplier factories. The assessment leveraged supplier data, the World Resource Institute’s Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas and the World Wildlife Fund Water Risk Filter to assess the following water-related potential financial and reputational risk indicators across the supply chain:

  • Water Stress  
  • Groundwater Depletion  
  • Water and Sanitation Access  
  • Coastal Flooding  
  • Riverine Flooding  
  • Water Pollution  

The assessment resulted in country- and facility-level heatmaps for each of the above risk indicators across the supply chain. VF sourcing countries, including China, India, Mexico and Vietnam, were identified as the highest risk for baseline water stress. Moving forward, results from the risk assessment will be leveraged alongside our enterprise-wide climate risk assessment, which also evaluates water related indicators such as severe weather events, to inform sourcing strategies. 

Key findings from the water risk assessment will also be incorporated into existing policies, procedures and strategies related to water reduction, replenishment, quality and access. 

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