There are many positive ways that sustainable clothing manufacturers impact on the environment. These include reduced waste generation, ethical sourcing of materials and minimising their carbon footprint. Why does this matter?
Fashion has a huge carbon footprint. In 2021 it was the second largest polluter, producing 10% of global pollution and was higher than air travel (Carbon Literacy).
Fashion is also hugely wasteful. In the Guardian this month it was reported that 80bn and 150bn garments are made a year (no-one seems to know exactly how many) and as many as 40% of those clothes will never be sold.
“Fast fashion isn’t free. Someone, somewhere is paying.” – Lucy Siegle, journalist and author of To Die for: Is Fashion Wearing Out the World?
When Lucy interviewed members of the public for the promo for the book, those interviewed said their criteria for buying clothes was price. And they didn’t even consider the working conditions of the makers.
Sustainable clothing manufacturers, large and small, have to address these problems. They do this by reviewing their production cycle from start to finish. This starts with the working conditions of the farmers who grow the cotton & linen or herd the sheep for wool. It continues to the working conditions of sewers and finishers on the production line.
Laura’s Loom makes scarves and socks from wool. The wool is produced by shepherds in Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales. Ava Innes makes cashmere socks and gloves from wool sourced in Yorkshire and made in Scotland.
Tutti Frutti children’s clothing is all sewn by hand by the business owner herself. She uses sustainably sourced fabrics and uses the offcuts to make smaller products like wipes.
Slow fashion aims to address the problem of waste clothing by asking consumers to consider buying more mindfully. Campaigns ask consumers to commit to a period of time without buying any more clothing.
Sustainable makers produce clothing designed to last. The Stitch Society makes artisan workwear – aprons and smocks in linen and denim. McNair Shirts make mountain shirts from merino wool, milled within ten miles of their factory.
Sustainable clothing manufacturers ask consumers to buy less, use more despite that being counterintuitive. And there is more education around reusing and repurposing clothing so that it lasts longer.
Manufacturers can offer recycling facilities for their clothing. YOU Underwear offers a recycling service in their Oxford Covered Market shop. Used underwear is recycled by TerraCycle UK.
Other makers reuse materials that would otherwise have gone to waste. Chloe Haywood is a maker who repurposes cashmere jumpers into accessories, and upcycles used clothing. Mending and repairing has always been the ethos of the Stitch Society. They are working on the circularity of their products, and expanding their services to prevent workwear going to landfill.
The way that fashion works has to change in order to reduce the impact on our environment. Sustainable clothing manufacturers have to be mindful of all the elements that go into their garments. The sourcing of materials, the working conditions of the makers and the carbon footprint of production all need to be considered.
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