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FEATHERY FACTS

The down in your sleeping bag isn't just the feathers of any old dead bird. The feathers come from the smaller clusters found on the under plumage of waterfowl like geese and ducks. Land fowl like chickens aren't used as the quality is too poor - although saying that, I expect you might find quite a few chicken feathers in your budget market stall 'puffer' jacket.

This natural fibre, while highly variable in nature, provides more warmth per ounce than any other material. Down's unique structure is responsible for its tremendous ability to trap warm air, with its filaments divided and sub-divided to reach out into its surroundings, creating dead air space that slows the movement of warm air.

By its very nature, a down-filled sleeping bag is as much as 35% lighter than its synthetic counterpart and is infinitely more compressible, providing the most warmth with the least bulk. Down is also known to have the greatest longevity and it will outlast any other insulation by three to five times, making it the most economical choice after its initial investment. Down also helps the sleeping bag drape luxuriously over the body and ensures good coverage and warm contact. The bigger the down cluster the better the insulation and loft. The size of the cluster is determined by several factors.

The bigger the bird the bigger the down cluster, so that's why big geese make better down than smaller ducks. The climate in which the bird is raised also has an effect, with thicker clusters being found on birds that need more insulation (unfortunately Siberian geese are rare). Perhaps it's for this reason that Vietnamese and Caribbean down isn't as highly prized as more northerly grown down. Most down is a by-product of the food industry and so the size of a down cluster is determined by when the bird gets the chop.

China is the chief source of down and in the last 20 years they have gone from just supplying the raw product to also manufacturing the majority of the world's down products. This has led to a dramatic drop in price forcing the home grown down manufacturers to move their focus - like many western industries - from bread and butter bags to the more specialized end of the market. Most of the 500-fill to 600-fill down comes from Chinese geese, with the birds being killed at only 12 weeks (weighing 2.7kg to 3.6kg).

Europe is the second biggest source of down, with its birds generally being raised to an older age than Chinese birds, meaning most high quality, high-fill down comes from Europe. The Euro birds get the chop at 16 to 20 weeks (6.4kg to 7.3kg), producing higher grade down of between 650-fill and 700-fill. The highest quality down comes from very old birds of over two years old (9kg). Some of these birds are 'guard geese', used to protect the other farmyard animals and are highly prized, meaning this down is not cheap. Much of this down is exported from the former Eastern Bloc, meaning down quality has improved since the fall of the Iron Curtain. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why the Poles climbed all those 8,000m peaks in winter? (Well that, and being absolutely nails.)

Not all birds need to die to keep you warm though. Some Hungarian geese are plucked while still alive, while the platinum premier down comes from the living eider duck. This cliff-dwelling bird is a protected species and so the down must be collected by hand from its empty nests. Personally I'm not sure who I'd rather not be - a Hungarian goose or an eiderdown collector?

One problem associated with down coming from the food industry is the increasing early age that the birds are processed at, making good quality down from older birds harder to come by. This is an increasing problem with all the natural materials used by the outdoor industry (including leather), as intensive farming lowers the life span of the merchandise. Once you've got the raw material the next step is preparing it so that it can be used to make your sleeping bag.

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The down in your sleeping bag isn't just the feathers of any old dead bird. The feathers come from the smaller clusters found on the under plumage of waterfowl like geese and ducks. Land fowl like chickens aren't used as the quality is too poor - although saying that, I expect you might find quite a few chicken feathers in your budget market stall 'puffer' jacket.

This natural fibre, while highly variable in nature, provides more warmth per ounce than any other material. Down's unique structure is responsible for its tremendous ability to trap warm air, with its filaments divided and sub-divided to reach out into its surroundings, creating dead air space that slows the movement of warm air.

By its very nature, a down-filled sleeping bag is as much as 35% lighter than its synthetic counterpart and is infinitely more compressible, providing the most warmth with the least bulk. Down is also known to have the greatest longevity and it will outlast any other insulation by three to five times, making it the most economical choice after its initial investment. Down also helps the sleeping bag drape luxuriously over the body and ensures good coverage and warm contact. The bigger the down cluster the better the insulation and loft. The size of the cluster is determined by several factors.

The bigger the bird the bigger the down cluster, so that's why big geese make better down than smaller ducks. The climate in which the bird is raised also has an effect, with thicker clusters being found on birds that need more insulation (unfortunately Siberian geese are rare). Perhaps it's for this reason that Vietnamese and Caribbean down isn't as highly prized as more northerly grown down. Most down is a by-product of the food industry and so the size of a down cluster is determined by when the bird gets the chop.

China is the chief source of down and in the last 20 years they have gone from just supplying the raw product to also manufacturing the majority of the world's down products. This has led to a dramatic drop in price forcing the home grown down manufacturers to move their focus - like many western industries - from bread and butter bags to the more specialized end of the market. Most of the 500-fill to 600-fill down comes from Chinese geese, with the birds being killed at only 12 weeks (weighing 2.7kg to 3.6kg).

Europe is the second biggest source of down, with its birds generally being raised to an older age than Chinese birds, meaning most high quality, high-fill down comes from Europe. The Euro birds get the chop at 16 to 20 weeks (6.4kg to 7.3kg), producing higher grade down of between 650-fill and 700-fill. The highest quality down comes from very old birds of over two years old (9kg). Some of these birds are 'guard geese', used to protect the other farmyard animals and are highly prized, meaning this down is not cheap. Much of this down is exported from the former Eastern Bloc, meaning down quality has improved since the fall of the Iron Curtain. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why the Poles climbed all those 8,000m peaks in winter? (Well that, and being absolutely nails.)

Not all birds need to die to keep you warm though. Some Hungarian geese are plucked while still alive, while the platinum premier down comes from the living eider duck. This cliff-dwelling bird is a protected species and so the down must be collected by hand from its empty nests. Personally I'm not sure who I'd rather not be - a Hungarian goose or an eiderdown collector?

One problem associated with down coming from the food industry is the increasing early age that the birds are processed at, making good quality down from older birds harder to come by. This is an increasing problem with all the natural materials used by the outdoor industry (including leather), as intensive farming lowers the life span of the merchandise. Once you've got the raw material the next step is preparing it so that it can be used to make your sleeping bag.

Links & Resources

Site Map