Ethical Fashion 101

 

 
 
In 2019, the textile industry had been declared the second most polluting industry in the world, just after oil. With more than one billion tonnes of greenhouse gases emitted each year – constituting approximately 10% of carbon emissions worldwide -, the textile industry polluted more than international flights and maritime traffic combined, These greenhouses gases were caused by two main factors: 

The raw materials used to make clothes

Using textiles such as cotton is costly for the environment: One crucial factor to the growth of cotton is water. For instance, producing a pair of denim jeans requires 7500 litres of water, or the amount of water an average person drinks in 7 years. More generally, 4% of the drinking water on earth is used to produce our clothes.

Other textiles, especially the synthetic ones like polyester/nylon/polyamide, or vegan leather, are derived from oil. But oil is not a renewable resource. Moreover, the production of textiles derived from oil necessitates various chemicals that can prove dangerous if released in nature (such as cobalt, manganese, sodium bromide, antimony trioxide, titanium dioxide…), in addition to emitting a significant amount of CO² emissions.

Moreover, clothes made from these textiles, when washed in the washing machine, leave plastic microparticles in the water and not all of them can be filtered by wastewater treatment plants. These microparticles end up in the sea, where they take decades to degrade. The only solution found to limit the escape of these particles is to wash the clothes at a maximum temperature of 30°C.

Additionally, clothes made with more than one type of fabric, that were dyed and contain zips and buttons are usually hard to recycle: a pair of jeans made from cotton and elastane typically fits into this case. To recycle this pair of jeans, every element has to be separated from the other, but doing so necessitates a skilled workforce and advanced technology, and sometimes chemicals that make the process slow and costly. 

The transport of both raw materials and finished products

The textile industry mostly uses planes, which are one of the most polluting types of transport in the world. Planes especially became a necessity for fashion businesses from the 2000s, with the relocation of sites of production from Europe to South and Southeast Asian countries. Meanwhile, online fashion trade began to rise: it is now possible for almost anyone to buy a dress designed in the UK but made in India, just by making a few clicks on the computer keyboard.

The success of online retailers can be partly explained by the wide range of clothes they offer at a very competitive price, which contributes to the exponential increase in overall consumption of clothes we are currently seeing: today in the UK, more than 2 tonnes of clothing are bought each minute. Fast fashion retailers offer new clothing collections every month, with some pieces available to buy for less than five pounds. Such strategy comes at the sacrifice of quality: the average lifespan of a garment has been halved over the last few years. Clothes being less resistant over time becomes, in the end, an incentive to buy even more clothes.

Environmental issues are not the only ones that should be taken into account when considering the impact of the textile industry - social issues are also important. Think, for instance, of the Rana Plaza incident, which happened in a textile factory near Dacca, Bangladesh in 2013. This incident caused the death of 1127 people, who were working in conditions that would be deemed unacceptable in “Western” society: overcrowded ceilings, no emergency exits or fire extinguishers, to name a few. The factory produced clothes for big brands such as Zara, H&M and Primark.

The average wage of workers in factories of South and Southeast Asians countries is low to the point that these workers have to work overtime in order to earn enough just to feed themselves and their families: some workers reported working more than 100 hours per week or 6 days out of 7, in poor conditions. The explanation behind this low wage is economic: there are more textile factories competing against each other to produce clothes for brands, than there are brands looking for textile factories. For instance, if most of the factories’ owners charge the brands two pounds per t-shirt produced, it becomes economically unviable for other factories to charge more.

The conclusion is obvious: we need to start questioning the way clothes are currently being both produced and consumed. For instance, is it really necessary to buy so many clothes? Is buying clothes from a fast fashion brand worth all the harm to planet and people? What about the £140 million worth of clothing that goes into landfill each year? Of course, there is no black and white answer to these questions. In terms of sustainability, best practice will always be to upcycle clothes when possible or to buy second-hand, but that doesn’t mean that no one should ever buy brand new clothes again. Thus, here is a small guide on how to shop for new clothing in an imperfect but more sustainable way than before.

1. When it comes to brands, choose wisely. 

To evaluate brands, several criteria can be used. For instance, transparency: where the clothes were produced, who made them and what raw materials were used. By making the answers to these questions readily available to a wide range of consumers, the brands show at least that they are trustworthy, even if their production line is not 100% respectful of the planet and workers’ rights. Of course, ideally we would have full knowledge of every single step of the production line, starting from the sourcing of raw materials to the final sale.

To help you evaluate different brands and products, here is a summary table of some of the most “eco- friendly” fabrics: (Note: If dyed, linen may contain some toxic chemicals of acid types.)

 
Source: WeDressFair here and here and here for the complete list of fabrics (in French only)

Transparency isn’t only a matter of raw materials, but also concerns knowing who made the clothes and under which conditions. The following table presents some of the labels that can guarantee decent working conditions for the workers, among other factors. 
 



Another best practice is buying from brands that produce locally: doing so means both that fewer greenhouses emissions will be let off for transport and that working conditions are (most likely) better regulated. Where that isn’t an option, try looking at brands that produce their clothing in other EU countries. These countries often have specific knowledge/cultural expertise regarding fashion and consequently can be more economically efficient. Below is a small list of brands which are transparent in regards to their production line, use innovative materials/textiles from the EU and whose production is also within the EU/UK:
A longer list can be found on Know the Origin’s Instagram

2. Be mindful of greenwashing

Some opportunistic brands, noticing that consumers are becoming more aware of the impact of the textile industry on the environment and other people, try to change their branding strategy without actually changing much in terms of the effect their practices have on the planet. Such brands use several strategies, among which some of them are:
  • Using keywords such as “committed”, “conscious fashion”, “sustainable” or “eco-friendly” in their advertisement, but without any tangible action. 
  • They label their garments with the wording “designed in the UK”. “Designed” does not mean “made in”, but only implies brainstorming a concept.Mentioning “organic cotton” or “recycled fabric”, but the labels used to certify that aren’t controlled or regulated by any public institution.
  • “Carbon compensation”: maintaining the same level of production (with all the consequences that go behind) while promising to the customers to plant “x” number of trees for “y” number of clothes bought.
Transparency and a fair price are one of the main indicators in determining whether a brand is doing its best. In short, unless the information about every step of the production line is readily available to the customers, it’s highly probable that the brand is greenwashing. By contrast, if the brand provides detailed information about where the clothes were made and what strategies it uses to produce more sustainably, it’s likely genuinely trying to be sustainable.

To sum up, here are the two main criteria to check when deciding whether to buy from a brand:
  • Transparency of the production line Greenwashing
  • Raw material/textile
  • Where (production site)
  • Who (working conditions, wage)
  • Type of transport 
  • What are the tangible actions?
  • Are the labels trustworthy?
  • Carbon compensation?
  • “Designed in” vs “Made in”

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Author: Laura

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