Why We Chose The Eagle Creek Migrate Duffel: Tough, versatile, and sustainable
We loved Eagle Creek’s previous Cargo Hauler range of duffel bags, and have been even more impressed by this new collection, mainly due to the sustainable efforts on show. We don’t want to give too much away, but it’s already made the cut in a big new series we’ll be running later this year that will explore the greenest of the green kit out there.
To cut to the chase, Eagle Creek have been removing car windshields from landfills to use as an ingredient in the Migrate’s water resistant bathtub base. It’s a material called Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB) – the stuff that stops windshields from shattering.
“Eagle Creek have been removing car windshields from landfills to help make these”
On top of that, the Migrate range has bluesign approval. This means it conforms to a set of very strict standards in relation to low impact and sustainable production. To gain this industry mark, a company needs to be fully transparent with their manufacture process and supply chain, and it’s refreshing to see that Eagle Creek have gone one extra step by openly displaying these details to customers alongside the product listing on their website. You can actually follow an interactive map to see from where and whom all the materials that have been used have originated, and the whole journey they’ve taken.
Alongside the PBV base, the other main material is a PVC-free polyester twill that’s coated with a TPU. This is water resistant, easy to clean, and it’s incredibly tough – in fact it has a 900D strength rating, so you can expect this to be able to shrug off virtually anything.
Like many duffel bags out there, it’s not designed to be 100% waterproof. It would need a waterproof zip and taped seams for that. However, you could plonk this down in a puddle or strap it to your car roof and drive a few hundred miles in the rain and still be pretty certain your kit will be protected. That’s all thanks to that TPU fabric and nice design features like the internal storm flap on the zip and ‘bathtub’ shaped base.