Sustainable Shorts: My Top UK Ethical Brands For Men & Women

Keep sustainably cool this summer, with this guide to ethical and sustainable shorts for men and women in the UK.

When the sun is riding high in the sky, there are a few things most of us want to do. Firstly, you’ll probably want to slap on some eco-friendly sunscreen to avoid sunburn. And then you will probably want to want to slip into a pair of shorts, to help keep you cool.

Of course, the shorts you wore last summer are the most sustainable shorts you could wear today. But if you are in the market for a new pair of ethical and sustainable shorts, then here are my top recommendations for you.

The Best Ethical & Sustainable Shorts For Men and Women

From Fairtrade organic cotton to hemp, Tencel, bamboo or recycled polyester there are a host of earth-conscious shorts brands, in a wide range of styles, that will help keep you cool this summer.

I’ve categorised these brands by size range and by budget, to help you find the pieces that fit your preferences with ease.

The price range key for this guide is:

 £ = Under £50 | ££ = £50 – 100 | £££ = £100+

Komodo

• Budget: £ – ££
• Caters for men (S – XL) and women (UK sizes 8 – 16)
• Available directly from Komodo

Komodo is one of my top places to find shorts for men and women – offering heaps of organic cotton or linen options for men and women.

This sustainable brand is committed to ethical manufacturing, working with long-standing family-run factories that provide fair wages, safe working conditions, and respect workers’ rights.

Komodo also prioritises the use of eco-friendly fabrics. Its organic cotton is Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified, ensuring no harmful pesticides are used, while linen is naturally sustainable and biodegradable. And as a member of 1% for the Planet – an international organisation whose members contribute at least one percent of their annual revenue to environmental causes to protect the environment – . Komodo also actively supports conservation efforts.

Get 10% off your first order when you sign up for the Komodo mailing list.

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BAM: Bamboo Clothing

• Budget: £ – ££
• Caters for: Men (sizes S – XXL) and Women (UK sizes 6 – 18)
• Available from: BAM

Looking for shorts made from bamboo? As you may have deduced from the name, BAM specialises in bamboo activewear. This includes a wide range of sustainable and ethical shorts for men and women.

And when I say wide range, I mean wide. You’ll find yoga shorts, running shorts, sports skorts, sports shorts, cargo shorts, bamboo linen shorts, and even denim shorts made from organic cotton and recycled cotton. There’s a pair of shorts for almost every occasion.

As well as selling seriously soft and comfortable activewear, BAM takes sustainability seriously. It has set ambitious goals that it wants to achieve by 2030 across every element of its supply chain. This includes zero waste to landfill, zero pollution, and zero water waste.

BAM also values transparency and shares information about both its factories and supply chain. The brand is also a member of the Fair Wear Foundation. This independent third-party assessor ensures that workers’ rights are protected and ensure that the factories used are safe and empowering places to work. 

Get 10% off your first order when you sign up for the BAM newsletter.

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Yes Friends

• Budget: £
• Caters for: men (waist sizes 28 – 38)
• Available directly from Yes Friends

If you’re looking for vegan and planet-friendly shorts on a budget, then it’s well worth checking out Yes Friends. Its chino shorts, made from 97% organic cotton, are GOTS-certified and produced in a Fair Trade-certified factory, using environmentally friendly dyes. They even come in under £30.

The brand goes beyond just paying fair wages by running a pioneering bonus scheme, directly increasing garment workers’ pay. They even allow customers to tip workers – a first for a UK brand.

Sustainability is key to Yes Friends, with solar-powered factories reducing carbon emissions and a commitment to only using organic cotton. Its use of Fairtrade cotton also supports farmers with fair pricing and additional funding for community projects.

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Passenger

• Budget: £
• Caters for: Men (S – XXL) and Women (UK sizes 8 – 16)
• Available from: Cotswold Outdoor

British outdoors brand Passenger makes eco-conscious clothing for all of life’s adventures. 

Its sustainable shorts range is made from responsible materials. In the case of its jog shorts, these are made from hemp and organic cotton. And its Carisso shorts (pictured) and made from organic cotton.

In fact, over 80% of Passenger’s range is made using responsible materials. This includes recycled cotton, recycled polyester, hemp and organic cotton. And by using water-based inks, even the prints are kind to the environment.

What’s also to love is that Passenger plants a tree with every order placed. Passenger additionally donates each month to The Rainforest Trust, to protect existing trees and soils all over the world. Each month Passenger protects a minimum of 65 acres with each donation.

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Colorful Standard

• Budget: ££
• Caters for: Men (XS – 2XL) and Women (XS – XL)
• Available from Harvey Nichols

For sustainable twill shorts and sweat shorts in a very specific colour, head straight to Colorful Standard. This sustainable essentials brand specialises in high-quality 100% organic cotton clothing in heaps of different colours – ranging from muted neutral shades to bold and vibrant tones.

The best part is that you don’t have to compromise your ethics. All of its shorts are ethically made in Portugal using 100% organic cotton. Colorful Standard also plants one tree for every order placed.

And whilst you might be worried about the environmental impact of all these dyes, you can breathe easily. Colorful Standard says all of the dyes it uses to develop its various shades are all Oeko-Tex Certified. This is an independent verification scheme where its dyes have been thoroughly tested for harmful chemicals.

What’s more, Colorful Standard garment dyes its shorts. This means the shorts are first made and then dyed according to demand only. This way, Colorful Standard can produce its products without wasting large quantities of dye.

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Patagonia

• Budget: £ – ££
• Caters for: Men and Women (sizes XS – 4XL)
• Available from: Cotswold Outdoor

Patagonia – the ethical outdoor clothing stalwarts – makes inclusively-sized and responsibly-made clothing that is designed to last and be repairable. 

If you don’t know your way around a sewing box, then don’t worry. Its website advises on how to repair all Patagonia items, which is very useful. 

And for any clothing that can’t be repaired then you can drop it off at a Patagonia store for recycling or repurposing. 

Patagonia uses many sustainable, recycled, and vegan-friendly fabrics and materials in its collection. Plus all of its clothing is finished with PVC-free inks, toxin-free dyes, and environmentally-friendly waterproof finishes for extra peace of mind.

In particular, its sustainable shorts selection is immense. From bike shorts to running shorts, as well as walking shorts and volleyball shorts and everything in between, the choice is mind-boggling.

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TenTree

• Budget: £ – ££
• Caters for: Men (sizes 30″ – 40″) and Women (XS – XL)
• Available from: Cotswold Outdoor

TenTree is a Canadian ethical clothing company, available in the UK at Cotswold Outdoor, that makes stylish ethically and sustainably produced outdoor and casual wear. It also plants 10 trees for every item you purchase – hence the name!

Trees are planted in partnership with various charities that plant trees, such as Trees for the Future, to ensure meaningful and sustainable replanting. 

Of course, it’s not just about the trees. As a certified B-Corp, tree planting is just one part of TenTree’s commitment to sustainability. Every TenTree item is also ethically made using only sustainable and responsibly sourced fabrics such as cork, coconut and hemp.

Its women’s shorts are made from sustainable Tencel, whilst its men’s range of shorts is available in hemp or organic cotton.

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Girlfriend Collective

• Budget: £
• Caters for: XXS – 6XL
• Available from The Sports Edit

Finally, if you are looking for inclusively sized and ethically made activewear, then look no further than Girlfriend Collective (available in the UK at The Sports Edit).

Catering for up to a UK size 26, its sustainable shorts and skorts are made from recycled plastic.

Additionally, all of its clothing is made in SA8000-certified factories. What this certification means is that it guarantees fair wages, safe and healthy conditions, and zero forced labour or child labour.

And there’s more to love. Through its ReGirlfriend Scheme, Girlfriend Collective takes back your old Girlfriend Collective pieces. Here they are recycled and turned into brand-new Girlfriend Collective pieces, rather than being downcycled into insulation products.