Down

Overview

Soft branching plumage clusters, commonly from ducks or geese. Down is a filling, not a spun fiber in ordinary apparel.

Feel and behavior

Lofty and insulating as filling.

Where you find it

Jackets, sleeping bags, duvets and pillows.

Source and geography

Down is the soft plumage that grows beneath the contour feathers of waterfowl, in commerce principally domestic geese (Anser anser domesticus and related domestic forms) and ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domesticus). Most commercial down is recovered from birds raised for meat and collected at slaughter. A smaller share has been harvested from live geese, a practice the European Food Safety Authority examined in 2010 at the European Commission's request. Down quality depends on species, bird age and maturity, and processing, so origin and species claims need documentation.

Worth knowing

• US industry labeling requires at least 75 percent down cluster for a product called down, while EN 12934 in Europe uses a lower threshold defined differently.
• The Responsible Down Standard began as a The North Face initiative and was handed to Textile Exchange, launching in January 2014.
• One down processor reported in 2026 an audited footprint of about 0.48 kg CO2e per kg of down, far below the EU database value of about 4.15.

Types, grades and fabrics

Types and grades

Down is sold by species, composition and loft. Goose and duck down dominate; mature birds give larger clusters. Fill power, the volume one ounce occupies under a standard test, is the main loft class: duck down commonly tests around 550 to 750, while goose down reaches higher values, and fills above about 800 are mostly mature goose. Composition is stated as a down to feather ratio such as 90/10 or 80/20, meaning percent down cluster and percent feather. In US industry practice a product labeled down needs at least 75 percent down cluster, and species labels such as goose down must be nearly all that species. European EN 12934 uses different thresholds and categories.

Fabrics and products

Down fills puffer jackets, vests, sleeping bags, quilts, comforters (duvets) and pillows. It is held in down-proof shells: tightly woven cotton cambric, batiste or sateen in bedding, and calendered or coated nylon or polyester ripstop in outdoor gear. Construction matters as much as fill: sewn-through quilting is light but creates cold spots at seams, while baffle-box walls let down loft fully. Hydrophobic down, treated with a durable water repellent finish, is used in some outdoor products. Blends with polyester fiber or feathers are used in cheaper bedding.

Buying and care

How to judge quality

Check four label items: species, down to feather ratio, fill power and fill weight. Fill power sets loft per ounce, but warmth depends on fill weight too, so a heavier 650 fill can be warmer than a light 850 fill. Fill power figures from US and European methods are not directly comparable. Quills poking through or a crunchy feel indicate feather content; a musty smell when damp suggests poorly washed down. Look for test reports from recognized labs and welfare certification such as the Responsible Down Standard. Very high fill power at a low price is a red flag. The FTC treats overstated down percentages as deceptive.

Care in detail

Wash down products only when needed, in a large front-loading machine without an agitator, on a gentle cycle at about 30 C or as labeled, with a down-specific detergent; ordinary detergents and fabric softener strip natural oils and reduce loft. Rinse twice to remove residue. Tumble dry on low heat with clean dryer or tennis balls, for several hours, until no clumps remain; damp down left in clumps can mildew and smell. Spot clean shells with mild soap. Store lofted in a large breathable bag, never compressed in a stuff sack. Air comforters in the sun occasionally. The product label governs.

Care at a glance

Follow the complete product’s care label. Blends, dyes, finishes and construction can change suitable washing, drying and storage.

Environmental and social footprint

Down is mostly a by-product of duck and goose meat production, and how its footprint is allocated is contested. The EU Product Environmental Footprint database gives about 4.15 kg CO2e per kg of virgin down including bird raising, a figure the processor ALLIED Feather + Down cited in 2026 when reporting its own audited processing at about 0.48 kg CO2e per kg. An LCA commissioned by the International Down and Feather Bureau from Long Trail Sustainability reported 85 to 97 percent lower impacts per ton for down than polyester fill; it is industry-funded. Welfare is the main social issue: the Responsible Down Standard, launched in January 2014 by The North Face, Textile Exchange and Control Union, prohibits live plucking and force-feeding.

Tradeoffs

Origin, processing inputs, labor, product construction and useful lifetime all need specific evidence. The name alone does not establish responsible production.

A useful question to ask: What exact material, product form and documented producer stand behind this name?

Science

Data sheet

Protein-based natural material

Most hair is keratin; silk is a different protein-fiber system.

Structure and chemistry

A down cluster is a plumule: a feather without a stiff vane, in which many soft barbs radiate from a small base and carry fine barbules. The barbules lack the hooklets that zip contour feather vanes together, so the barbs stay separate and form a three-dimensional, springy cluster that traps still air. In their review of feather morphogenesis, Alibardi and Toni describe the barbs of downfeathers as forming independently, and identify the dominant structural protein as feather keratin, a small protein of about 10 kDa that replaces alpha-keratins in barb and barbule cells and polymerizes into filaments by a mechanism different from mammalian hair keratin.

From source to yarn

Down and feathers are collected at slaughter or, where permitted, gathered from live birds during molt. The raw material is washed with detergents to remove dirt and preen oil, rinsed, dried at high temperature to sanitize it, cooled, and then separated by air-flow sorting, in which air currents lift the lighter down clusters away from heavier feathers, fragments and dust. Blends are then made to a target specification such as a stated down to feather ratio, tested for composition, cleanliness and fill power, and blown into baffled or sewn-through shells.

Performance in use

Dry, lofted down gives very high warmth for its weight compared with most fiber fillings, compresses into a small volume and recovers repeatedly. Fill power, the volume a fixed mass occupies after standardized conditioning and compression (expressed in cubic inches per ounce in US practice), is the usual loft index. Its main weakness is moisture: wet clusters collapse and lose insulation, and drying is slow, which led to hydrophobic down treatments. Down is protein, so strong alkali and chlorine bleach damage it, and soiled down can support insects and odor. Fill power results from different test protocols are not directly comparable.

How it is identified

Burn tests (indicative only; perform with care) show keratin behavior but reveal nothing about species or grade. Laboratories assess fill by hand-sorting a weighed sample into categories such as down clusters, down fibers, feathers, broken feathers and residue, and use microscopy of barbule structure to separate goose from duck. Frequent problems are duck sold as goose, overstated down percentages, and feather fragments counted as down. Live-plucking cannot be detected in the finished fill, so welfare claims rest on audited supply-chain records.

History

Timeline

1. 2010EFSA held a stakeholder meeting in May and received 922 submissions in a public consultation on live harvesting of goose feathers. [2]
2. 2010EFSA adopted its scientific opinion on harvesting feathers from live geese on 27 October. [3]
3. 2014The Responsible Down Standard, which prohibits live plucking and force-feeding, launched in January under Textile Exchange. [4]
4. 2026A down processor reported an audited processing footprint of about 0.48 kg CO2e per kg, against an EU database value of about 4.15 including bird raising. [5]

Down became a familiar filling because its clusters trap air. Modern product descriptions distinguish species, fill composition and measured loft, alongside welfare and traceability.

The deeper record

Down and feathers have long been used as bedding and quilt fillings, and industrial washing and air sorting later turned them into a graded commodity for bedding and outdoor clothing. Concern about harvesting feathers from live geese led the European Commission to request a scientific opinion from EFSA, which held a stakeholder meeting in May 2010, received 922 submissions in a public consultation, and adopted its opinion on 27 October 2010. EFSA concluded that at least minor pain and injury seemed unavoidable under commercial conditions if plucking occurred, and recommended removing only ripe feathers with a control system, a position later reflected in voluntary down standards.

Labeling and law

Composition and loft claims are tested under industry methods such as the IDFB testing regulations and European standards, including EN 12130 for fill power. Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011 requires textile products containing non-textile parts of animal origin to state this on the label. Textile Exchange's Responsible Down Standard is a voluntary certification that prohibits live-plucking and force-feeding and tracks certified down through the chain of custody. EFSA's 2010 opinion distinguished gathering ripe feathers during molt, which can be done without pain, from plucking, which causes bleeding follicles and other injury.

This describes what rules and standards cover. It is not legal advice; jurisdiction, product form and current rule text control.

Frequently asked

What does 90/10 mean on a down comforter?

It means about 90 percent down cluster and 10 percent feathers by weight. Higher down ratios usually mean lighter, loftier fill. In the US, a product labeled down needs at least 75 percent down cluster, and labels below that must state both down and feather percentages.

Is goose down better than duck down?

Goose down clusters are often larger, so the highest fill powers are usually goose. But a mature duck down can outperform immature goose down. Compare stated fill power and fill weight rather than species alone.

What fill power do I need?

About 550 to 650 suits everyday bedding and casual jackets, 700 to 800 gives lighter, more packable warmth, and 800 or more is used where weight matters most, such as ultralight sleeping bags. Fill weight determines total warmth.

How do I know down was not live-plucked?

Look for a recognized welfare certification such as the Responsible Down Standard, which prohibits live plucking and force-feeding and tracks certified down through the supply chain. Live plucking cannot be detected by testing the finished fill.

Can a down duvet be washed at home?

Often yes, if it fits loosely in a large front-loading machine. Use a down detergent, a gentle cycle and a long, low-heat tumble dry with dryer balls. Oversized comforters are better sent to a professional cleaner.

Sources

• Textile Exchange: Material standards
• EFSA Journal: Scientific Opinion on the practice of harvesting (collecting) feathers from live geese for down production (2010)
• EFSA Journal: Outcome of the stakeholders and public consultation on harvesting feathers from live geese (2010)
• Progress in Histochemistry and Cytochemistry: Cornification during feather morphogenesis (Alibardi and Toni, 2008)
• IDFL: Comparison of Down Cluster Labeling Standards
• Federal Trade Commission: Down...But Not Out, Advertising and Labeling of Feather Down
• Textile Exchange: Responsible Down Standard (RDS)
• International Down and Feather Bureau: Life cycle assessment shows down and feather products are more sustainable than alternatives
• Textile World: ALLIED Feather + Down finds 85% lower carbon emissions than estimated down industry average (2026)

Cite this page

Chaos. (2026). Down. In Fibers of Earth: An independent textile atlas. https://www.hendrickresearch.com/fibers/materials/down/