Down
Down has a short quill and is much lighter and softer than feathers. Down is found under the plumage and has very fine hairs; it is light, fine, and fluffy. Typically, higher quality and finer down is used in duvets, which on the one hand provides good insulation against cold, and on the other hand absorbs and stores body heat.
These duvets are particularly soft, light, voluminous, and provide excellent warmth.
Duvets filled with down are especially suitable for sleepers who have a high need for warmth and do not tend to sweat.
Depending on the filling quantity and quality of the down, these down duvets have different thermal classes.
Typically, goose down or duck down is used. The European standard DIN EN 12934 regulates the labeling.
The Down Pass for down and feathers ensures that the supply chain is traceable back to the raw material supplier and that the down and feathers were ethically and correctly obtained. Additionally, the quality of all products is monitored by independent testing institutes.
High-quality German suppliers pay attention to the supply chain and know where the down comes from. Here, the down usually comes from family businesses in Hungary, which specialize in processing down and feathers.
The VDFi (German Bed Feather Industry Association) condemns live plucking. Generally, down and feathers are a by-product of the slaughter industry, and their extraction occurs after the slaughtering process. Ducks and down-producing birds are kept for the slaughter industry and for meat production.
Worldwide, 2% of down and feathers come from live plucking.
