Why Regen Ocean Robic Nylon?

The Big Agnes development team is purposeful with all materials that we select go into our products. Every day, there are new, exciting evolutions in the world of sustainable textiles, and we like to keep our finger on the pulse. Big Agnes is thrilled to partner with Hyosung’s Ocean Protection Initiative to produce our Sweetwater UL pack series. Any Sweetwater UL pack features regen Ocean Robic Nylon as the primary material. Regen Ocean Robic Nylon is an innovative post-consumer recycled nylon, which removes plastic pollution from the ocean and transforms it into high-quality textiles.

Why choose regen Ocean Nylon? 

Every year, humans dump an estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic debris into our oceans. In 2025, the cumulative amount of plastic waste in marine environments is estimated around 263 million metric tons. To put these numbers in context, the Great Pyramid of Giza weighs ~5.7 million metric tons. Every year we're dumping the plastic equivalent of 2 Great Pyramids into the ocean, and there are ~46 Great Pyramids worth of plastic already accumulated. The stone that makes up the Great Pyramid of Giza is significantly denser, meaning this plastic takes up much more space. This level of pollution has decimated marine ecosystems, one example being the Great Pacific Garbage Patch - a massive accumulation of plastic pollution formed by the naturally occurring currents in the Northern Pacific, estimated to be ~100,000 tons (~1.8 trillion plastic pieces). 

It's estimated that ~20% of all marine plastic debris comes from boats and other marine sources, such as fishing and aquaculture. Larger plastic debris can wreak havoc on marine ecosystems; wildlife often mistake plastics for food (which can lead to starvation when ingested), and marine mammals frequently become entangled in abandoned plastics in a phenomenon referred to as "ghost fishing." After time these larger plastics are broken down by UV exposure and ocean processes and transformed into microplastics, which significantly disturb the food chain by blocking sunlight to the autotrophs below who make up the foundation of the food chain. Microplastics also have an impact on humans; they enter the food chain and make their way up until humans are ingesting them. Hyosung's regen Ocean Nylon proposes an exciting solution to this crisis by collecting and recycling plastic waste into functional materials. 

What is regen Ocean Robic Nylon? 

Regen Ocean Robic Nylon is an innovative high-tenacity nylon made from 100% discarded nylon fishing nets and other reclaimed nylon waste from our oceans. Robic is another name for Nylon 6, a highly elastic form of nylon with a high level of strength. Compared to a typical nylon, regen Robic Nylon is more durable and resistant to wear and can be considered a more technical type of nylon. Hyosung's regen Ocean Robic Nylon is a post-consumer recycled nylon, meaning the materials are recycled after they have already been used in consumer or industrial setting. 

How is Regen Ocean Robic Nylon made? 

1. Collection: The process begins with locating and retrieving these cast- off fishing nets. Once collected, the nets need to be cleaned and sorted into nylon and non-nylon content. Depending on their intended use, the composition of fishing nets can vary significantly! 
2. Chemical Recycling and Depolymerization: Once sorted and cleaned, the nylon is formed into "chips" and sent through a complicated chemical recycling process. Nylon is considered a Polymer, which means it is composed of long chain of repeating molecules. To begin the recycling process, the nylon chips go through a process called depolymerization, a chemical process that breaks the nylon down into its smaller building blocks. You can think of this like a bicycle chain; if nylon is a completed bike chain, depolymerization breaks it into the individual links. During this process nylon is broken down into smaller molecular units, which together form caprolactam, an organic compound that serves as the primary raw material for producing nylon. The caprolactam is then further refined and filtered to remove any impurities, ensuring that the materials made are high-quality. 
3. Creation of regen Ocean Robic Nylon: The reclaimed caprolactam is then polymerized, meaning it is chemically altered to reform into the larger macromolecules that compose nylon. During repolymerization, the caprolactam turns into a substance called polycaprolactam, another name for nylon 6 or regen Robic. Once repolymerized into nylon 6, it is spun into yarn which can be woven into a variety of fabrics for different applications. 

Reducing our Carbon Footprint: In addition to the numerous benefits around the ocean cleanup initiatives, regen Ocean Nylon has a significant impact on the carbon footprint of producing materials. Making regen Ocean Robic Nylon produces about 56% less carbon than a traditional virgin Nylon. In producing 2025 Sweetwater UL Packs, we've saved a total of ~3,000 kg of C02 equivalent just by using regen Ocean Robic Nylon instead of virgin nylon. To put this into context, this reduction is the same as ~7,500 miles of driving a car at 22.2mpg. This is the same as driving from New York City to Los Angeles almost 3 times! 

As an individual purchasing a Sweetwater UL pack, you're reducing your carbon footprint by ~.7 kg C02 equivalent for a 26L day pack, ~.85 kg C02 for an overnight 43L pack,  and a ~1,2 kg C02 equivalent for a 60L pack. While these numbers may seen small, every eco-conscious choice you make as a consumer adds up and can make a significant different throughout your lifetime. 

We want the outdoor community to be able to sleep in the dirt for generations to come. Our team strives to empower our customers with high-quality, functional, and comfortable gear while maintaining an eco-conscious mindset. Our innovative material choices are just one part of our commitment to running our business as sustainably as possible.