The University of Wisconsin-Stout has recently made the decision to purchase graduation gowns made entirely from post-consumer plastic bottles.

The order for 900 gowns will come from the company Herff Jones, which also supplies gowns to the UW-Madison and will cost each student $2.50 more, according to Valerie Espejo, the manager of the UW-Stout Bookstore.

Espejo was sent a sample gown and said the fabric was very similar to that of the gowns they previously have used, just a bit softer and more flexible. A co-worker tried both gowns on and preferred the “green” gown, commenting the old one was a bit itchy.

“I think the students will be happy — I don’t see anyone being upset about it,” Espejo said.

UW-Stout uses “keeper” gowns that students must permanently purchase, while UW-Madison uses rental gowns that are continuously cleaned and reused, according to Rick Hanick, the sales representative from Herff Jones for UW.

UW-Madison would be interested in looking into the recycled gowns, but has no plans to change their rental policy, according to Duane McLaughlin, the UW-Madison University Bookstore coordinator for cap and gowns.

“I couldn’t see that something that was worn by people for two hours going into the waste stream,” McLaughlin said.

According to Hanick, the only way UW-Madison could use the recycled gowns is either purchasing them as “keeper gowns” or ordering them custom-made solely for the UW-Madison, rather than sharing them in a pool with other universities.

“Madison goes a step further by renting them, returning them and reusing,” Hanick said. “Using the rental gown is the most eco-friendly gown you can get.”

In May 2009, there was a total of 5,967 graduates from UW all using rental gowns.

One reason why UW-Madison would shy away from going to the custom-made recycled gowns, according to Hanick, is cost.

“The students pay so much for school at UW-Madison, the last thing you want to do is hit them with an astronomical cost for gaps and gowns,” Hanick said.