Sustainability Policies
At Nike, we hold ourselves to the highest standards and we take our local and global responsibilities seriously. Nike’s policies are a formal, accepted standard or approach to the way Nike conducts business, relating to social and environmental issues.
When it comes to business and sport, we value fair play. We believe a world-class responsible supply chain is grounded in standards that demonstrate respect for the people who make and move our product, the principles of a healthy and safe workplace, and the environment. We have a responsibility to run our business in a sustainable way, and that responsibility extends to the facilities who make our products.
Every facility that makes and moves products for NIKE, Inc. “Nike” must meet a rigorous set of compliance requirements. The Nike Code of Conduct and Code Leadership Standards lay out the minimum standards we expect facilities to meet.
We work with suppliers that share our commitment to the welfare of workers, use natural resources responsibly and efficiently, manage their businesses responsibly and sustainably, and seek to move beyond minimum standards.
These minimum standards are integral to Nike’s facility strategies — how we evaluate baseline performance and determine the suppliers we will continue to engage with as we grow our business.
We regularly review facilities to assess their ability to meet our high standards. These reviews take the form of verified industry assessments or audit visits —both announced and unannounced—by internal and external parties and measure performance of facilities against the Nike Code of Conduct and Code Leadership Standards.
Nike Facility Code of Conduct & Code Leadership Standard
The Nike Facility Code of Conduct lays out the minimum required standards we expect each facility to meet. The Nike Facility Code Leadership Standards outline how our facilities should implement the Code of Conduct.
Manufacturing Restricted Substances List
The Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (MRSL) industry-wide tool assists brands, their supply chains and the broader industry to adopt an aligned approach to the control of hazardous substances in the manufacturing process for apparel and footwear. It bans the intentional use of priority chemicals during the manufacturing of textiles, synthetic leather and natural leather, and sets impurity limits for these substances within chemical formulations supplied to material vendors.
Microfibers and Microplastics Statement
Nike is actively working with stakeholders across our value chain and industry to identify long-term, scalable solutions to address microfibers and microplastics.
Restricted Substances List
The Restricted Substances List (RSL) sets out chemical standards for our materials that meet or exceed regulatory or legislative requirements from around the world and includes substances that we have voluntarily restricted or limited in our product. This RSL is now aligned to the AFIRM chemical limits list.
ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines
Along with the ZDHC, we have created and adopted Wastewater Guidelines that set out a unified expectation on wastewater quality for the entire textile and footwear industry.
Nanotechnology Material Guidelines
This policy restricts the use of nanomaterials within Apparel, Footwear and Equipment product lines.
Odor Management, Antimicrobial & Scented Materials Policy
Nike currently restricts the use of scented materials and/or odor control technologies within Apparel, Footwear and Equipment product lines. This restriction applies to any chemical or substance intentionally applied to product to control bacterial populations, capture odors, mask odors or perfume product or the consumer.
Raw Materials Standards
The Raw Materials Standards document outlines Nike's strategy for sourcing, trading, tracing and transforming raw materials into Nike Footwear, Apparel and Equipment, including specific guidance on animal-derived materials and restricted biomes for leather sourcing. It aims to support cultivation of a world-class supply chain, achieve traceability of all products and address commodity-specific sourcing considerations.
Conflict Minerals Policy
Nike’s Conflict Minerals Policy expects suppliers to support the responsible sourcing of conflict minerals using Responsible Minerals Initiative conformant smelters and refiners.
Packaging Restricted Substances List
The Packaging Restricted Substance List gives substance details and restriction levels for Nike packaging, as well as packaging design requirements to comply with global legislation.