Tag Archives: Responsibility

How does “Poison Plastic” translate to “Sustainable Plastic”? Anyone?

And so, as promised, I had sent an email requesting more information on PVC to Melissa (via Arbec Group), Vivienne Westwood and Grendene.

I received an email response from the Arbec Group immediately asking me which environmental and safety concerns I was referring to. A simple Google search might have given them an idea, but none the less, here was my response:

According to this 2005 Greenbiz article, “[h]azardous chemicals are used and released in this commonly used material, the second highest selling plastic in the world. Studies show links between chemicals created and used during the PVC lifecycle and cancer, reproductive and immune system damage, and asthma”. The article claims that many companies have taken action in eliminating PVC from their products due to health, safety and environmental concerns such as Microsoft, Crabtree and Evelyn, Wal-Mart, HP, Adidas, Aveda, Bath and Body Works, the Body Shop, Gerber, Honda, Ikea, Lego Systems, Nike, Samsung, SC Johnson, Shaw Carpet, Toyota, Victoria’s Secret, Volkswagen, and Volvo. And of course, MEC as mentioned in the earlier post. The Centre for Health, Environment and Justice even maintains a “PVC: The Poison Plastic” campaign.

I have yet to hear back, but when I do I will post an update.

So what do we have?

-These shoes are being marketed and sold as sustainable.

-We know that in 2005 companies such as adidas, Nike and Wal-Mart took steps to remove PVC from their products, as a result of the hazardous nature of the material.

-Melissa claims that Grendene is the “holder of exclusive injected thermoplastic”

-According to their website, Melissa has trademarked ‘MELFLEX’ which is “hypoallergenic and 100% safe for your health. It is odourless, neutral and natural”

-The companies involved have yet to comment on the hazardous reputation of PVC in the textile and apparel industry.

Let’s talk briefly on the importance of understanding the lifecycle of a garment. It may be true that the factory producing the PVC for this shoe company maintains “practically zero waste” and that the shoes are easily recyclable in house. The company boasts the sale of 176 million pairs of shoes per year. Surely all of these shoes are not sent back to the original factory in Brazil for proper breakdown.

There are quite a few shocking factors at play here: that a fashion/apparel company could so blatantly market itself as sustainable without feeling the need to support its claim; that the entire lifecycle (particularly post consumer) of the PVC is not taken into consideration when stressing the company’s take on its plastic “ecological manifesto”; and the lack of response for comment on the ‘sustainable nature of PVC’

Greenbiz article is available here

“PVC: The Poison Plastic” campaign is available here

Vivienne Westwood: PVC Debate

Vivienne Westwood: Lady Dragon

Vivienne Westwood recently teamed up with Melissa to create a new shoe collection. “The Fashion Audit: 02/02/09” in The Independent claims that these shoes are made from recycled rubber. The shoe company offers limited information on the details of the environmental factors associated with the plastic. One thing for sure, the shoes, like all Melissa shoes, are made from PVC (polyvinyl chloride). Now, I am no expert on PVC, that’s for sure, but I seem to recall the material being associated with some pretty serious safety and environmental risks. What’s changed? Apparently, at least one PVC manufacturer (Grendene), has been producing sustainable PVC since 1996?

Vancouver based Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) takes a clear stand against the use of PVC in its products. According to MEC,

“Polyvinyl chloride, known as “PVC” or simply as “vinyl”, is a common compound used in thousands of products. But for us and the planet, it’s bad stuff. During manufacture it produces potent carcinogens and toxins including dioxins, chlorine residue, and heavy-metal pollutants. Over their lifespan, PVC products can off-gas and leak some of their dangerous additives. PVC is difficult to recycle; most of it ends up in landfills. When burned, it releases further dioxins and gases such as hydrogen chloride.”

According to Melissa,

“Plastic is the chosen medium to communicate technology and renewal”

“Because our products are created from mono-materials they can be easily disassembled and recycled. Solid, liquid and gas residues, left over from our production process, are recycled and dealt with in-house. Nothing leaves the factory without being treated, resulting in practically zero waste.”

The company sources its PVC from Grendene, whose site offers no real information on the material. You can read the company’s Code of Conduct here, and a statement on PVC here

I have sent in an email to the people at Melissa, Vivienne Westwood, and Grendene requesting more information on PVC and will hopefully hear back and write more on the subject at a later date.

You can find “The Fashion Audit: 02/02/09” by Harriet Walker here

You can read more on Melissa’s sustainable plastic dreams, and the designers working with the company here

Hong Kong Textile Conference Includes Eco-Component

Interstoff Asia Essential Spring 2009 Seminar Program includes an eco-textile panel component. The conference runs from March 18-20th, 2009. The eco-session on the 19th asks “Can sustainability survive the global credit crunch?” The panel was co-organized with Eco Textile News.

Brand Session:

Harsha Vardhan, H&M and Hans Buehr, Head of Purchasing, Triumph International. The session will be moderated by Mr. John Mowbray, Editor of Eco Textile News.

Supplier Session:

Mr. Paul Mui, Head of Business Management Textile Chemicals East Asia, BASF (China) Co Ltd. The moderator for this session has yet to be determined.

The second session on March 18^th, titled “Supply Chain Management, CSR and the New Classification System of Interstoff”, will feature Mr Karl Borgschulze, Systain Consulting, Hong Kong.

As cited here on the registration form:

Mr Borgschulze will introduce the latest trends in the area of CSR and supply chain management in six aspects:

Social aspects along the supply chain
Climate change and its relevance for fabric supplier
Sustainable reporting along the supply chain
The new classification system
The integration of existing standards into the system
Opportunities for exhibitors and visitors

Mr Borgschulze who has more than 20 years’ experience in international supply chain management and in ecological optimization of value chains majoring in the textile sector, is the Managing Director of Systain Consulting Asia. Mr Borgschulze was involved in the development of a number of ecological standards such as Pure Wear, bioRe® and the IVN standard, and has since 1999 been a member of the Scientific Advisory Council of the German DTNW Textiles Research Centre in Krefeld. Mr Borgschulze has extensive project experience across the continent from Europe to Asia.

Source: Eco Textile News, Interstoff Asia Essential and Messe Frankfurt Hong Kong

Sweated Labour, Dell, Transparency and this Blog

The issue of transparency is an important one. So, here’s a little blogging transparency … I write Social Alterations on my ‘Made in China’ Espresso Brown Dell Inspiron 1525.

The National Labour Committee released a report today titled “High Tech Misery in China: The Dehumanization of Young Workers Producing Our Computer Keyboards” Sure enough, Dell is one of the companies manufacturing products in the Meitai Plastics & Electronics factory highlighted in the report in Dongguan City, Guangdong China.

According to the report, the base salary at the factory is 64 cents/hour. Minus room and board, workers take home 41cents/hour. Tax all in, my ‘made to order’ laptop set me back $620.48.

Other companies producing in the factory include Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Microsoft and IBM.

You can view the NLC report here

AHRC: Call for more attention for handloom weavers suffering from hunger and Tuberculosis in Varanasi‏

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) released a ‘Hunger Alert’ update today regarding the state of poverty and TB amongst handloom weavers in Varanasi, India. According to the report, the weavers are suffering from lack of medical attention, government neglect and extreme poverty and hunger. You can read the entire alert, as well as view a letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health and World Health Organisation calling for their intervention here.

What does this have to do with sustainable fashion design?

To say that the textile sector in India is vast would be an understatement. A decline in India’s handloom weaving industry has left these weavers without work to provide for their family, and created a situation where they are too ill to change their circumstance. Human Rights violations against the handloom weavers in Varanasi cannot be ignored. Sustainable solutions must include all aspects of the industry.

On a related note, the Centre for Sustainable Fashion released information this week regarding the Shared Talent: India competition. This competition will showcase sustainable textiles in India. For more information on the competition, see here.

Source: AHRC and CSF

Global Surplus in Organic Cotton Production

According to this article by Eco-Textile News, although 2008 saw an increase in demand for organic cotton by 33%, global production was left with an 8% surplus. The article cites information released by non-profit Organic Exchange, who also claim that demand for organic cotton will likely result in a 24% increase in 2009 an worry that inventory will remain too high.

The Organic Cotton Market Report will be available in Feb 2009 for review.

FEI Conference

A home worker's work bench in Belgrade, Credit: Clean Clothes Campaign via FEI

Fashioning an Ethical Industry: Putting Ethics into Practice March 11th, 2009

This is a one day conference that will bring together experts in ethical fashion, as well as students and tutors, to discuss the current state of the ethical fashion industry, and ways to put ethics into practice. There is no question this will be an excellent conference.

You can read more about this year’s conference and speakers here.

To read a report on last year’s event click here, or to listen to a podcast, click here.

Source: FEI

The nature of your garment is to fall apart?

Another interesting article taken from The Independent today, discussed some frustrations in dealing with products that not only fall apart, but are designed to fall apart.

Thought it might be time for another poll.

Fast fashion to blame for female consumer complaints in the UK

Consumer complaints in the UK surrounding poorly made clothing increased by 22% in 2008, according to this article by The Independent. The article cites a report by Consumer Direct released today. It claims that the biggest consumer complaint amongst females came from ‘defective goods’, at 34%.

According to the article, “[i]n the past five years, with the rise of “value” retailers, the price of clothing has fallen by as much as 25 per cent, while shoppers have bought almost 40 per cent more garments. This suggests fast fashion may be behind the increase in problem items.”

The article also cites statistics from another report, released by Global Cool, stating that female shoppers spent £11 billion on clothes that were never worn last year.

Fast fashion has created systems that cycle through clothing at a speed impossible for consumers to keep up with, and impossible to produce proper value items.

What an incredible waste.

green textiles not popular among shoppers

A recent report by The Boston Consulting Group, “Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies,” surveyed the green consumer purchasing habits of 9,000 shoppers across nine countries.

One section of the report showed that consumers vary their green purchases by product category (see Exhibit 6 in the report). While 14% have bought green before, but are not buying it now and 28% are buying green sometimes, 50% have never bought green. Only 8% of survey participants buy green systematically. As a result, ‘Textiles and clothing’ was listed as the third lowest category.

The report also states the need for companies to keep potential consumers informed with green credentials. These days, what’s in a credential anyway? The report showed that almost survey participants “reported being confused when shopping for green products and uncertain about exactly what being green means, what benefits it provides, and how to tell if a product is green” (18).

The full report is available in PDF here and is worth a read if you are interested in green/ing consumer habits.