Efforts by a fashion industry to reduce the environmental impact of the clothing it sells is reportedly being undermined by an ongoing addiction to buying new clothes, with the average Briton buying 28 items every year.
Asos and Primark are said to be among the big names signed up to Wrap’s voluntary environmental pact, Textiles 2030. While the companies involved have managed to reduce both the carbon intensity and volume of water per tonne used in their clothing manufacture, in its annual progress report, published today, the climate action NGO warns of hard-won gains being “cancelled out” because clothing production is “spiralling upwards”.
According to available data, Textiles and fashion are responsible for up to 10% of global carbon emissions.
Catherine David, who is Wrap’s director of behaviour change and business programmes, said that the progress made by 130 brands and retailers involved showed “it’s possible to change this”. But that at the moment, “as fast as positive improvements happen, they’re cancelled out by rising production”.
Recall that the companies had reduced the carbon impact of their textiles by 12% and water by 4% (on a per-tonne basis) between 2019 and 2022. However, this was negated by a 13% increase in the volume of textiles produced and sold, according to the report. The increased production rates meant overall water use actually rose by 8% over the period, while the carbon reduction figure stood at just 2%.
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David was quoted as saying that consumers had a part to play, since production is obviously related to consumptions. “We’re working with companies to improve clothes, but the other part of the equation is our role as shoppers,” she said. “We buy more clothes than any other nation in Europe.
“Our research shows that a quarter of most wardrobes go unworn in a year and nearly a quarter of us admit to wearing clothes only a few times,” she further stated. “Moving into winter is the perfect time to look through our wardrobes – wear what we have and consider whether it’s time to let something go. You can donate, sell or give clothes away – it all helps them move around the economy and reduce the amount produced.”
On a positive note, the report revealed that increased use of recycled polyester and polyamide had helped reduce the amount of fabric made from virgin materials. Also nearly three-quarters of cotton used by signatories now comes from improved sources such as the Better Cotton Initiative.
Story was adapted from the Guardian.
