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At Second Earth, everything we do starts with two things: caring for the planet and caring for our health. Before we ever launched our first natural yoga mat, we spent years (and yes, a lot of money) researching, testing, and questioning different materials to make sure our products were genuinely good for people and the planet.
Along the way, we learned a lot. One of the biggest eye-openers? Just how much misinformation and greenwashing exists in the yoga and wellness space. Sadly, it’s something we see across many industries today.
Lesson 1: Greenwashing is everywhere
Greenwashing is when brands try to appear environmentally friendly without actually backing it up. It often relies on vague buzzwords like eco-friendly, green or natural — terms that, frustratingly, aren’t regulated.
This makes it really hard for customers to tell the difference between a genuinely sustainable product and one that just sounds good on the surface. From our experience, if a brand can’t clearly explain what their product is made from and why it’s safe, that’s a red flag.
For brands that truly care, greenwashing is incredibly frustrating. Doing things properly — responsibly sourcing materials, avoiding toxic ingredients, and creating products that don’t harm the planet — is not cheap. So it can feel pretty disheartening when other products are marketed as “eco-friendly” when they’re anything but.
For context, at Second Earth, our mats are independently tested by SGS to EU REACH standards for over 200 substances, including restricted chemicals, plasticisers, heavy metals and phthalates.
Which leads us to lesson number two.
Lesson 2: Yoga mats to be cautious of
PVC yoga mats
Would we use a PVC mat?
No. Not ever.
Are PVC mats biodegradable?
No.
PVC is one of the most toxic plastics on the planet, yet it’s still widely used because it’s cheap. It can take up to 1,000 years to break down and is harmful at every stage of its life — from production to disposal.
PVC is made using vinyl chloride, a known carcinogen, and its manufacturing process releases toxic dioxins into the environment. To make PVC mats soft and flexible, toxic additives like lead and phthalates are often used.
Phthalates are particularly concerning. They’re known to interfere with hormones and have been linked to developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune issues. They can migrate to the surface of products during use — meaning potential exposure while you’re simply practising yoga.
This isn’t just bad for the person using the mat, but also for the workers producing them and for the environment long after the mat is thrown away.
PER and TPE yoga mats
Because PVC has such a bad reputation, manufacturers have introduced cheaper “alternatives” and marketed them as eco-friendly. The most common are PER and TPE. Unfortunately, they’re not the great alternatives they’re often made out to be.
PER yoga mats
Would we use a PER mat?
No.
Are PER mats biodegradable?
No.
PER is essentially PVC with different stabilisers. While it may avoid certain toxic additives like phthalates, it still contains vinyl chloride — the same carcinogenic base ingredient used in PVC.
There’s also limited data on the long-term safety of some of the chemicals used in PER. For us, that’s not something we’re willing to gamble our health on.
TPE yoga mats
Would we use a TPE mat?
No.
Are TPE mats biodegradable?
No.
TPE is often described as “less toxic”, but it’s still a petroleum-based product. The term itself is very vague and can mean many different chemical blends. If a brand can’t clearly explain what’s in their TPE mat, that lack of transparency should raise questions.
Some of the cheapest forms of TPE contain styrene and butadiene — both considered human carcinogens.
Lesson 3: Better yoga mat options
After years of research and testing, we found materials that are genuinely safer for both your body and the planet.
Natural rubber yoga mats
Natural rubber mats are biodegradable, grippy, dense, and heavy enough to stay put during practice.
Natural rubber is harvested by tapping rubber trees — a process that removes a small amount of bark without harming the tree. The sap (latex) is then processed and naturally vulcanised using sulphur.
When choosing a natural rubber mat, it’s important to ensure the rubber is responsibly sourced from rubber tree farms, not from cleared rainforests.
A couple of things to note:
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Natural rubber mats can have a slight smell when new, which fades quickly.
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They do contain naturally occurring latex proteins, however when natural rubber is vulcanised most of the latex proteins are destroyed, but those with severe latex allergies should take care.
Cork yoga mats
Cork comes from the bark of cork oak trees and is one of the most sustainable materials available. The bark is harvested without damaging the tree, regenerates naturally, and can be harvested every nine years. Cork oak trees can live for over 200 years and are incredible carbon absorbers.
Cork is durable, naturally antibacterial, buoyant, and becomes grippier as you sweat.
When choosing a cork mat, look for one with a natural rubber backing. Some cork mats use PER or TPE underneath, which undermines their sustainability.
Jute yoga mats
Jute is strong, biodegradable, and has one of the most eco-friendly production processes of any fibre. It requires no pesticides, no fertilisers, and very little water.
On its own, jute doesn’t offer much cushioning, so it’s often blended with other materials. Jute combined with natural rubber (rather than PER or TPE) makes for a durable, grippy, and planet-friendly mat.
A final note
The information shared here isn’t health advice — we’re not health professionals. This is simply what we’ve learned through years of hands-on research, testing, and speaking with manufacturers.
Thanks so much for reading this far. We hope it helps you make a more informed choice when choosing a yoga mat that’s truly good for you — and for the planet 🌏💚