In March there were a number of initiatives that looked at the industry’s actual sustainability efforts and their impact on the environment. The Berlin Fashion Summit addressed the key themes of regenerative fashion and innovation, and brands and retailers increased their circularity efforts. Read through the sustainable highlights of the month.
Actual sustainability efforts and greenwashing
At the end of the month, the EU Commission submitted a proposal to strengthen consumer rights and prevent so-called greenwashing; Vague product information such as “green” and “environmentally friendly” should therefore be banned in the EU if they are not proven. Also, no statement should be made about the environmental compatibility of a product if it actually only affects a certain part of it.
A Changing Markets Foundation (CMF) report, also released at the end of the month, found that voluntary certification schemes can contribute to greenwashing in the fashion industry. The CMF is a non-governmental company that educates about the conditions of the general market through campaign work.
After its study “Status of German Fashion” at the beginning of last year, the Fashion Council Germany has now published the sequel, the “German Fashion Footprint”, which shows the global effects of the German fashion industry. The insightful 60-page report examines the industry’s environmental performance across five key drivers: greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, water use, energy demand and agricultural land use.
circular economy
In 2020, the EU Commission published a Circular Economy Action Plan that aims to make sustainable products the norm in the EU, support the EU’s target of carbon neutrality for 2050 and promote sustainable growth. The textile industry has been identified by the EU Commission as one of the sectors with the greatest environmental impact and the lowest sustainability, along with four other industries. A new series of articles from FashionUnited follows the implementation of the unprecedented action plan.
The most recent article provides an overview of the extent of the EU regulations in question and how they will affect virtually all players in the value chain, from sports to luxury brands, from manufacturing companies, from fiber to product and to waste management.
Circular economy shopping platform CCrave opened its second pop-up concept in Amsterdam at the end of the month, while Los Angeles-based company Everywhere Apparel launched the world’s first closed-loop clothing line made from 100% GRS-certified recycled cotton brought. With its microplastic-free Circot yarn and fabric, the company wants to offer a fully recycled alternative to recycled polyester (rPET), which has been shown to release even more microplastics than virgin polyester.
Berlin Fashion Summit
The Berlin Fashion Summit, which took place in the middle of the month, dealt with the topics of regenerative fashion and innovation, among other things. The three days of the Summit were packed with interesting lectures and panel discussions, some of which took place on site and some of which took place virtually.
While there is some clarity about what constitutes sustainability, circular economy and cradle to cradle, it may not be clear what design means for the biosphere and for the fashion industry. The very first day highlighted this interesting topic with contributions from experts such as Lauren Bright from the Biomimicry Institute, Renana Krebs, CEO of vegan tech-style start-up Algaeing, and Chandra Prakash Jha from Fashion for Biodiversity Solutions.
The second day of the summit was all about innovation and started with author and podcaster Kristine Harper, who spoke about anti-trends. Daniel Rüben from Kornit Digital presented on-demand printing as an answer to the industry’s overproduction, while Ina Budde from Circular.fashion, Marte Hentschel from Sqetch and Martin Lades from Assyst presented German innovations in the field of sustainable textiles.
On day three, industry leaders met to discuss how regenerative sustainability can move into fashion systems and transform the way the industry works for good, once and for all.
brands and retailers
True to its motto “Don’t wear clothes, wear change”, the multimedia platform Fashinnovation published a directory of ethical, sustainable, inclusive and innovative brands in the second week of March. Meanwhile, the sustainable Cologne-based label Armedangels launched its own resell platform with the help of the recommerce start-up Reverse.supply, while sporting goods manufacturer Puma presented a recycling project for football shirts. Outdoor specialist Globetrotter presented an upcycling collection made from discarded pieces and fabrics, and vegan bag label Miomojo received B-Corp certification.
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