Paka, the Alpaca apparel manufacturer based in Peru, launched Pakacloud, an alpaca-based fleece that the company said: “outperforms standard synthetic fleece in warmth to weight ratio, testing twice as warm in CLO value tests.”
Paka introduced a pullover made with the “fully traceable” Pakacloud, which features hollow medullated air pockets, “reducing heat transfer and creating an insulating buffer compared to synthetic fibers, which have a heavier, less insulating solid fiber structure.”
Alpaca wool boasts moisture management, antibacterial, and thermoregulating properties due to the animals’ evolution in the fluctuating alpine environment of the Andes.
Paca stated, “Traditional synthetic fleece, made from oil, is the largest contributor to microplastic water contamination in the clothing industry, shedding up to 250,000 microfibers in a single wash.” The company’s Pakacloud “offers a more sustainable option for the full fleece lifecycle—Paka’s alpaca fiber is renewable and ethically sourced and the natural fibers in the fabric blend don’t shed microplastic pollution into our waterways when washed.”
“What’s crazy to me is that the word ‘fleece’ means the wooly covering of an animal,” Kris Cody, Paka founder and CEO, said. “Yet 95 percent of fleeces currently made are from oil (polyester, acrylic, nylon). I’m so proud that we’ve re-infused nature back into fleece and made it 2x warmer.”
The Pakacloud fleece is made with baby alpaca fiber, named for the softness of the wool. Each pullover features a handwoven Inca ID crafted by women artisans “employed at 4x the living wage in Peru,” with a cord lock system at the hem featuring pullers made from corn byproduct.
The Pakacloud is available in unisex sizing in Oat, Navy and Black. ‘
Photo courtesy Paka
