Greenpeace has praised Inditex, Benetton and H&M for “leading the
industry towards a toxic-free future” in its third Detox Catwalk campaign
to eliminate hazardous chemicals by 2020.
The three apparel firms topped the online ranking of 19 fashion and
sportswear companies, with Greenpeace stating that they were the only
“avant-garde” companies that were on track to clean up their chains as
promised by 2020, due to them all having “credible timelines, concrete
actions and on-the-ground implementation” in place.
“We applaud H&M, Zara, and Benetton for leading the way and setting a
new standard in toxic-free fashion,” said Kirsten Brodde, head of the Detox
My Fashion campaign at Greenpeace Germany. “These companies prove that
cleaning up the fashion industry is possible – both for large and
medium-sized companies.”
At the other end of the ranking, Greenpeace listed Nike, Esprit,
Victoria’s Secret and Li-Ning, as “faux pas”, as these are four companies
the environmental organisation claims originally made a Detox commitment
but are “currently heading in the wrong direction” as they’ve all failed to
take individual responsibility for their supply chain´s hazardous chemical
pollution.
The other 12 brands, including Adidas, Burberry, Levi’s, Primark and
Puma, have found themselves in the middle “evolution mode”, as they all
have made commitments to detox and Greenpeace can see that progress to
implement plans has been made, however, they believe that they need to
“evolve faster” to achieve the 2020 Detox goal. With Greenpeace adding that
each brand is not banning enough hazardous chemicals and rely on the flawed
chemical list from the industry group Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals
(ZDHC). This list is missing important substances like PFCs and solvents
like Dimethylformamide (DMF).
Companies like C&A, Fast Retailing, G-Star, Mango, and Miroglio score
higher within the same “evolution mode” group, either for better chemicals
management or greater supply chain transparency, Greenpeace added.
“Our assessment shows that the textile industry as a whole is not doing
enough to go toxic-free. 16 out of the 19 brands assessed are stumbling
over transparency issues or failing to eliminate toxic chemicals; with only
three years left they must speed up now if they’re to meet their 2020
deadlines,” said Brodde.
The Detox My Fashion campaign demands fashion brands to commit to zero
discharge of all hazardous chemicals by 2020 and requires their suppliers
to disclose the releases of toxic chemicals from their facilities to
communities at the site of the water pollution. The list assesses how
committed companies have performed against key criteria, including
eliminating known hazardous chemicals from their products and manufacturing
processes, disclosing pollution information and publishing suppliers’
lists.
Brodde added: “A major step forward this year is that committed
companies are truly lifting the veil on their supply chains. Companies are
publishing complete suppliers’ lists, which shows a trend for long-term
relationships with suppliers networks, built on mutual trust. That is
crucial for implementing the Detox programme.”
Image: Greenpeace – The Detox Catwalk