In its latest Sustainability Report 2021, the fashion chain C&A highlighted the company’s progress in the area of sustainability: According to this, the proportion of recycled polyester has increased significantly, but the start of denim production in Germany is also one of the sustainable successes of the past year.
More recycled polyester
In relation to Europe, C&A has procured a total of 77 percent of its core materials more sustainably and, in accordance with its own strategy, intends to procure 100 percent of its materials sustainably by 2028. According to C&A, the greatest progress has been made in the area of materials. The company was able to increase the proportion of recycled polyester by a third from 5.3 percent to 15.7 percent. Overall, the proportion of polyester in the collection is around 18 percent. Overall, the percentage of polyester in the collection fell by 1.3 percent compared to 2019, which C&A defined as the base year for achieving the sustainability goals.
More sustainable cotton in focus
At 99 percent, almost all of the cotton now comes from more sustainable sources, whereby C&A counts not only certified cotton according to the Organic Content Standard (OCS) and Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), but also cotton from the Better Cotton Initiative, recycled cotton and cotton from fields that are currently in the transition phase to more sustainable cultivation methods. OCS, GOTS and BCI cotton account for 97.5 percent of this. Recycled cotton has been able to reach 0.4 percent of the total cotton volume, compared to zero percent two years ago. In total, C&A processed around 56,000 tons of cotton last year, which corresponds to around 62 percent of the entire collection. Sustainable fibers are also gaining in importance in the area of synthetic cellulose fibers. For example, 41 percent of synthetic cellulose fibers are sustainably produced. Two years ago, this figure was less than one percent.
Increase in recycled cotton fibers
The use of recycled cotton is set to increase even further in the years to come: C&A recently entered into a four-year strategic partnership with Recover, a materials science company and producer of eco-friendly, mechanically-recycled cotton fibers, to incorporate high-quality recycled cotton into everyday garments bring. At the end of 2021, C&A also launched the “We Take It Back” program in retail in the largest sales markets, France and Germany, which has now also been rolled out in branches in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and Austria .
Further development of Cradle to Cradle products
C&A launched the first Cradle-to-Cradle T-shirt several years ago. In 2021, C&A was able to further develop its Cradle to Cradle-certified clothing and transfer it to denim for the first time. The Forever Denim collection, made from Platinum Level Cradle to Cradle Certified® denim fabric, was launched in 2021. According to C&A, this is the first textile fabric in the clothing industry to receive this award.
Production in Europe
A milestone in the sustainability strategy is the opening of the new denim factory in Germany. The CO2-neutral production facility C&A FIT produces around 400,000 jeans a year in Mönchengladbach and serves to gain new insights into how production can be brought closer to the consumer.