Featherless down, is there really such a thing? The answer, yes and no. No, because down is feather, that would be like inventing a product called waterless H2O. Yes, because 3M’s featherless down looks and feels like real down with the warmth of natural down.

Here’s the really cool thing about featherless down, unlike duck down synthetic down is warm even when wet. It’s equal to 600 fill power, and the bonus, no feathers needed. Featherless down is also loftier than down at the same basis weight. If that’s not enough to make you a convert, featherless down costs less than the real stuff.

There’s also the allergy issue that plagues many people. Let’s face it down is awesome whether it’s in a comforter, jacket, mitten, or booties, it is a product that many of us love. On the other hand, it’s pretty cool that companies like 3M can come up with a product that costs less and can eliminate the one major problem with the original natural version. For me that’s the cold when wet problem. Many of us have been out in the backcountry in a rainstorm only to find our sleeping bag soaked through and through. Not only is a situation like that uncomfortable but it could also be life threatening.

There are many reasons that outdoor clothing manufacturers have introduced featherless down into their lineup. The cost thing and the warm when wet thing just makes good business sense. No one thinks that featherless down is going to replace natural down but it is a nice alternative for all the reasons mentioned.

I dare you to grab a jacket made of down and one of featherless down and see if you can tell the difference, (that is without looking at the garment swing tag for material content). There's another reason featherless down is catching on. In a news story last year, the practice of plucking feathers from live ducks exposed the inhumane treatment of our fine feathered friends. Most American outdoor clothing companies do not take part in live duck plucking and don’t do business with factories that do. It’s just good to know that there is an alternative product that work as well as down and without harm coming to animals.