Sustainability is currently the buzzword, but how sustainable is the fashion industry?
Companies fall over each other to emphasize their contribution to sustainability. Interest groups say that a lot of work is still being done. For me, sustainability means that we meet our needs without jeopardizing people, the environment or the economy, now and in the future.
Looking at the fashion industry we see a painful enumeration of non-sustainable aspects. A quarter of all pesticides in agriculture are used in cotton cultivation. For the production of clothing, enormous amounts of water are needed. Production of textiles accounts for ten percent of global CO2 emissions. One sixth of the world’s population – mostly inhabitants of developing countries – works in the clothing industry. Among whom many people who often can not manage their income. The result: the fashion industry has developed into one of the most polluting and human-unfriendly branches in recent years. Consumers seem to finally realize that sustainability in fashion is more than ever important to change the industry.
Smart Fashion
Does “Smart Fashion” actually exist? And what would be a good meaning for that?
Smart Fashion as a name for a sustainable fashion industry? With fair working conditions in production countries and minimal damage to the environment? A big job with the questionable position of the fashion industry at the moment. But Smart Fashion is closer than expected. Because the Netherlands excels as a network country and there are just enough opportunities for cooperation in the chain. But is Smart Fashion more widely applicable?
I think so. Cooperation as a magic word. And that is possible on multiple levels, with business economic benefits. Make choices for the type of material you use with your supplier. E.g. organic cotton requires much less water and that is perfectly applicable. But efficient improvements in the field of logistics, are obviously also under the banner of Smart Fashion. Too much exhaust gas emissions due to inefficient distribution routes? Not necessary. How do you deal with packaging waste as a clothing company? A company can choose to take the waste, such as cardboard and plastic, back with the same trucks with which it delivers and recycle it centrally.
Smart Fashion and Fast Fashion, is that going together? Fast Fashion is a model that is often propagated in fashion. High turnover rates with many changes of affordable collections in the store to entice the less loyal and more price-conscious consumer into the stores. But also a model where fashion chains often collaborate with suppliers who can produce even faster and cheaper. Customers of these chains, often the younger generation, have grown up with the phenomenon that clothing is discarded every few months. This maintains the Fast Fashion businessmodel. Or would a Smart Fashion businessmodel be able to change the Fast Fashion industry into a more sustainable and economical solution and still conscious and attractive for the young customers?With free advertising as an encore.
Obviously, a more sustainable fashion industry really starts with us. The majority of CO2 emissions and the energy consumption of a garment are not caused by material, production and distribution, but by washing and other ‘aftercare’. For example, jeans are the most popular garments in the world. But jeans is cotton, it requires a lot of paint and the ‘sandblasting’ that makes them ‘behave’, causes lung diseases among the workers. Never throw textiles in the trash. Two thirds of the textile that is thrown away in the world can be re-used. Half of them can even be worn immediately.
How smart with fashion are you?
