CRUELTY-FREE WOOL IS GOOD FOR YOU AND ME!
BY: BAYLEN EDWARDS-MILLER
The notable designer, Stella McCartney, is committed to operating her fashion house in a way that abides by something referred to as “Stella McCartney's Sustainability Commitments”. These eco-friendly and sustainably innovative commitments outline the way in which this business operates in order to be a vegetarian brand who believes in treating animals and their habitats with respect. They promote a cruelty-free ethos and continue to innovate ways of creating sustainable materials.
One of the main commitments that the brand has is to eliminate animal products. More than a billion animals are killed each year for fur and leather. Producing a fur or animal skin jacket consumes 20 times the amount of energy needed to produce a coat made from natural fibers or synthetic materials. This is clearly an issue that is plaguing the fashion industry as a whole. The luxury fashion industry, however, really faces this issue when it comes to using leathers and exotic skins in their products. In an attempt to combat this epidemic, Stella McCartney has committed to use only cruelty-free wool and requires every wool supplier to provide certified & signed documentation stating they practice animal friendly farming.
Stella McCartney sources their wool from a small group of hand-selected farms that have been carefully chosen based on their commitment to animal welfare and environmental stewardship. The brand uses wool because it is one of the most naturally technical materials in the world. It has the ability to keep you warm but it also breathes. It has antibacterial properties so it does not require frequent washing. It is naturally water repellent, fire resistant and is long-lasting. These natural benefits are a great reason for McCartney to incorporate this material into her designs. Stella McCartney believes that wool can only be truly sustainable if it does no damage to the planet, animals or humans. That’s why they decided to pursue, and were the first in fashion to achieve, Gold-Level Cradle to Cradle Certification for one of their most used wool yarns. To do this, they worked with one of their key knitwear suppliers who makes more than 79% of their wool knitwear yarns. The certification looks at five categories consisting of material health, material reutilization, renewable energy and carbon management, water stewardship and social fairness. To achieve the certification, the brands worked closely with an independent assessor. Together, they focused on optimizing their entire wool process, from avoiding the use of pesticides around sheep, to changing the chemistry of dyes, and improving the health, safety and sustainability of the materials.
Although this revolutionary wool process is being adapted by Stella McCartney at the luxury level, fast-fashion brands also have the ability to put this commitment into practice. Three innovations that a company can implement to meet this commitment include ensuring that pesticides and cruelty are being avoided at farms by choosing organic cruelty-free wool where the animals will not be treated with pesticides or subjected to mulesing which is when some skin is cut off the sheep to reduce parasite infestations (MacEachern, 2016), use mills that produce their own electricity with hydro turbines and solar panels (Lutkin, 2017), and incorporate wastewater treatment within production facilities to degrade molecules that are hazardous to the environment such as Germany-based yarn manufacturer Südwolle’s eco-friendly Naturetexx® Plasma treatment which uses electricity and air rather than chlorine to make machine-washable wool (Rodie, 2016).
In 2018, Stella McCartney will co-sponsor a prize with PETA for the Biodesign Challenge. This is the first ever PETA Prize for Animal-Free Wool, which encourages college students worldwide to develop biofabricated vegan wool. The challenge will connect design students with biotech professionals to develop new inventions, and the winners from each school will showcase their designs in New York City. This exciting initiates has the potential to innovate the future of wool within the fashion industry and will help to create a more attainable sustainable fashion industry for you and me.
References
Amed, I. (2015, March 29). Stella McCartney: Change Agent. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.businessoffashion.com/community/voices/discussions/can-fashion-industry-become-sustainable/stella-mccartney-change-agent
Lutkin, A. (2017, October 13). Theory Is Using Ethical Wool To Make 100% Sustainable Suits. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://www.greenmatters.com/living/2017/10/13/25lT5E/ethical-wool
MacEachern, D. (2016, January 24). Is It Possible to Buy Cruelty-Free Wool? | Care2 Healthy Living. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://www.care2.com/greenliving/is-it-possible-to-buy-cruelty-free-wool.html
Rodie, J. (2016, February 15). Textile Works. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://www.textileworld.com/textile-world/quality-fabric-of-the-month/2016/02/quality-fabric-of-the-month-sustainable-machine-washable-wool/
Excellent post Baylen. Especially where you really discuss the practices a company can put into place to live uo to Stella's commitment. Well done!
ReplyDeleteAlso... I love your sheep selfie with the sheep's statement, "CRUELTY-FREE IS GOOD FOR YOU AND ME".
I like it because it comes from the sheep themselves... who sadly cannot speak for they themselves- and therefore some company stakeholders forget that sheep, too, do have a voice- and you just gave them one! NICE WORK!