Allbirds Misrepresents ‘Carbon Footprint,’ ‘Ethically Sourced’ Shoes, Claims Class Action Lawsuit

A New York woman claims that the $1 billion company Allbirds, Inc falsely advertises its wool shoes as sustainable and made from “ethically sourced” materials in a class action lawsuit filed Sunday.  

Lead plaintiff, Patricia Dwyer, seeks to represent other consumers in New York who purchased Allbirds “ethically made running shoes.” Dwyer claims that she and others paid more for the shoes because of the Allbirds false advertising and accuses the company of violating New York consumer protection laws.  

Dwyer claims that she purchased several pairs of Allbirds wool shoes at Walmart and online, paying more than competing lower-priced products available. She said she relied on marketing by the company that claimed the shoes were made from sustainable materials and “ethically sourced” wool. She claims that she discovered that she and others had been duped by Allbirds marketing and the shoes are not as sustainable and ethical as advertised.  

Allbirds originally sold directly to consumers, but the shoes can now be found in a variety of retailers, including Walmart and Nordstrom, according to the class action lawsuit. The shoes retail for approximately $95 a pair and the company was valued at $1.4 billion recently.  

The class action lawsuit alleges that Allbirds touts its “ethically made running shoes,” pointing to a number of measures it takes to use sustainable materials on its website and in print advertising. Dwyer claims that Allbirds misrepresents these measures, starting with the so-called carbon footprint of each wool shoe.  

The plaintiff accuses the company of cherry-picking standards it uses to measure the carbon footprint of the wool it uses to make Allbirds running shoes. In addition, the company uses data from a variety of sources, leading to discrepancies and unreliable results, further undermining its sustainability claims. 

The company also falsely claims that the wool used to make the shoes is “ethically sourced,” claims the class action lawsuit. Dwyer points to advertising on the company’s website that touts the “happy sheep” that produce the wool for its shoes. She claims that research into the wool producers used by Allbirds, ZQ Merino, reveals a much different reality for the sheep.  

“Based on investigations into more than 100 large-scale wool operations, most of which had been promoted in the same terms used by Allbirds – as ‘sustainable’ and ‘responsible’ – ‘workers beat, stomped on, cut open the skin of, and slit the throats of conscious, struggling sheep,’” states the class action lawsuit.  

Dwyer also accuses Allbirds of falsely touting its “transparency” when it comes to the wool industry it uses to make its shoes, noting that the producers are not required to let certifiers through the gates and audits of sheep tending practices only occur every three years. 

The plaintiff also contends that the so-called environmentally friendly practice of using discarded crab shells to make Allbirds ethical running shoes, glosses over the fact that the crab industry is “inherently harmful,” trapping endangered whales in fishing gear and even threatening the crab population itself.  

“Defendant sold more of the Product and at a higher prices than it would have in the absence of this misconduct, resulting in additional profits at the expense of consumers,” claims the class action lawsuit. 

Dwyer seeks to represent other customers in New York who purchased Allbirds. She wants the company to pay damages and a court order barring Allbirds from falsely advertising its shoes.  

Have you purchased Allbirds? What do you think of the false advertising claims? Tell us in the comment section below! 

The lead plaintiff is represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates, P.C. 

The Allbirds False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Dwyer v. Allbirds, Inc., Case No. 7:21-cv-05238 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  

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