London – The authencity of the an
certification from the Textile Exchange which aims to ensure the best
practices in animal welfare are carried out on bird farms which supply down
and feathers, has be cast into doubt following an undercover exposé from
PETA.
The animal rights’ organization visited geese farms in China, the source of
80 percent of the world’s down, which have connections to retail suppliers
holding the RDS certification and found countless cases of live-plucking.
This is a process which sees the birds feathers ripped from their skin,
painfully and cruelly, several times before the bird is finally
slaughtered. Live-plucking is “prohibited” by the RDS, which stresses that
the “welfare of the birds must be respected at all times: from hatching to
slaughter.”
However, under the RDS suppliers are allowed to handle live-plucked down,
raising numerous concerns regarding the legitimacy of the RDS
certification. The RDS also which stresses that “the entire supply chain is
audited by a professional, third party certification body” and that only
products which contain 100 percent certified down carry the RDS logo.
Apparel labels which carry the RDS certification include H&M, Columbia and
The North Face.
A representative from Jilin City Bailing Down Product Co., one of the
largest feather and down exporters in Northeast China, confirmed
they receive feathers and down from a cooperative in the exposé. “The
plucking is done in secret; we’re unwilling to pluck openly”, said
the representative. “[W]e advertised that it’s all plucked after slaughter
– nobody dares to buy it if you say it’s live-plucked”, which again raises
concerns with the RDS certification.
“There’s simply no guarantee that the feathers inside any jacket or pillow
weren’t ripped out of a screaming goose’s skin”, commented PETA Managing
Director Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is calling on kind retailers and consumers
to ditch down in favour of high-tech synthetics that are compassionate,
warm and hypoallergenic – and even insulate when wet.” This way, argues
PETA, retailers can assure consumers that their garments are 100 percent
animal cruelty-free.
Warning: Graphic images below, viewer discretion is advised
Photos: Courtesy of PETA US, from expose