“Slow fashion makes more sense than waste – Transition to sustainable production and consumption includes a strong focus on localisation” – Written by Gray Maguire, Business Day, 03 November 2020.

As always, another insightful article by Gray Maguire. Here are some of my key takeaways from this article. I have added some additional links that might be of interest.

Some key statistics quoted from the article:

  1. The fashion industry is said to be responsible for 10% of annual global carbon emissions. If the trend continues, emissions could increase by more than 50% by 2030.
  2. In addition to the carbon emissions, demand for plastic-enhanced fabrics results in half a million tonnes of plastic microfibres going into the ocean every year, the equivalent of 50-billion plastic bottles.
  3. According to the Fashion Revolution Transparency Index 2020 edition — Woolworths, Mr Price, Truworths and Foschini — all scored below average in the 11%-20% category and less than 2% for the traceability of their factories, processing facilities and raw materials.

Some key insights from the article:

The slow fashion transition includes;

  1. a strong focus on localisation
  2. greater collaboration between designers and the downstream value chain
  3. more focus on sustainable reduced-plastic fibres
  4. tackling its environmental footprint to curb emissions and fabric waste.

References:

  1. https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/opinion/columnists/2020-11-03-gray-maguire-slow-fashion-makes-more-sense-than-waste/
  2. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/fashion-industry-carbon-unsustainable-environment-pollution/
  3. https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/our-work/activities/make-fashion-circular/report
  4. https://www.fashionrevolution.org/about/transparency/
  5. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/fashion-on-climate

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