The folly of fast fashion
How many of those ‘boho skirts’ were bought in Singapore alone last year? How many now languish at the back of closets, having made way for leggings, retro prints and kimono tops? Fashion trends change faster than ever - cheap, poor-quality knock-offs are shipped out of factories weeks after a runway show; celebrity culture inspires copycat styles that shift as frequently as Lindsay’s excuses do.
The International Herald Tribune examines how the impact of ‘disposable clothing’ on the environment:
Consumers spend more than $1 trillion a year on clothing and textiles, an estimated one-third of that in Western Europe, another third in North America, and about a quarter in Asia. In many places, cheap, readily disposable clothes have displaced hand-me-downs as the mainstay of dressing in one or two generations.
The result: women’s clothing sales in Britain rose by 21 percent from 2001 to 2005 alone, to about £24 billion, or $47 billion, spurred by lower prices, according to the Cambridge report.
And while many people have grown accustomed to recycling cans, bottles and newspapers, used clothes are generally thrown away. Britons on average discard about 65 pounds, or 30 kilograms, of clothing and textiles a year. Only an eighth of that goes to charities for reuse.
"In a wealthy society, clothing and textiles are bought as much for fashion as for function," the report says, and that means that clothes are replaced "before the end of their natural life."
The report referenced in the article refers to a Cambridge research project entitled "Well Dressed? The Present and Future Sustainability of Clothing and Textiles in the UK".
The report suggests some ways the "ideal consumer" should behave:
- Buy second-hand clothing or textiles where possible
- Buy fewer but longer-lasting garments and textile products
- Extend the life of clothing by mending them
- Buy clothing made of synthetic fabric, or those made with least energy and least toxic emissions
- Wash clothes less often, at lower temperatures and using eco-detergents, hang dry them and avoid ironing where possible
Page 14 of the report also highlights the main environmental and social pressures faced by the clothing and textile industries, which include: (i) use of energy and toxic chemicals in the manufacturing and processing of the primary materials; (ii) child labour; (iii) lack of freedom of association and collective bargaining (FACB) rights of low-skilled workers; (iv) absence of employement contracts and delayed payments; (v) sexual harrassment; and (vi) exposure to hazardous chemicals and fibre dust in factories.
It’s a superbly comprehensive report… go download and read it for yourself! :)
