The era of the fashion industry self-regulating sustainability is drawing to a close around the world. Several jurisdictions are adopting new rules which are set to have a widespread impact on both consumers and fashion players. As a result, brands and manufacturers will need to revamp their business models to align with the changes ahead.
These changes aren’t surprising when you consider that EU consumption of textiles has one of the highest impacts on the environment (falling behind only food, housing and mobility). It is also the third highest area of consumption for water and land use, and fifth highest for the use of primary raw materials and greenhouse gas emissions.
One of the most eye-catching proposals is an ‘anti-fast-fashion’ law in France. The French government has proposed a new law which will ban the advertising of fast fashion and impose a penalty of half the retail price, up to a maximum of €10 per item by 2030, on brands that are considered irresponsible – all quite loosely defined and open to quite a bit of argument!
There are also proposed changes at EU level: several new laws have passed, or are passing, through the EU’s legislative process regarding “green” claims/greenwashing and recycling. The European Parliament has given its final green light to a directive that aims to improve product labelling and ban the use of misleading environmental claims. In addition, the European Council and Parliament have agreed legislation to make packaging generally more sustainable and reduce packaging waste in the EU.
In the UK, green claims have been a priority for the regulators for a while. In March of this year, the CMA announced the resolution of its investigation into ASOS, Boohoo and George at Asda in relation to their respective green claims. As a result of that investigation, those companies have given undertakings to comply with certain commitments but the CMA has also taken the step of issuing an open letter to the sector, urging fashion retail businesses to review their claims and practices.
The EU is also looking at introducing mandatory and harmonised extender producer responsibility rules for textiles, and providing incentives to producers to design products that are more sustainable as well as restricting the export of textile waste and promoting sustainable textiles globally.
It isn’t just in Europe, either: across the pond the New York Fashion Act, which requires brands with more than $100 million in revenue doing business in New York to map and monitor their full supply chain, address any abuses and set comprehensive climate targets. Its scope would effectively cover every major fashion brand in the world and many mid-sized ones. It is currently passing through the legislative process.
As well as reassessing business models, there are new reporting requirements on the way. Examples of legislation include the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the UK’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements. These mean that businesses need to be able to collect, analyse and report data about their sustainable business practices.
While we wait for these changes to materialise it is clear that fashion brands and manufacturers will have their work cut out to keep up with and comply with the new requirements.
The Collective by Lewis Silkin
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