British Fashion Council members failing to publish climate targets
Ahead of this year’s London Fashion Week, which kicks-off on the 12th of September, new research has claimed that less than 4% of British fashion brands have climate targets in place[i]. The report from Collective Fashion Justice analysed publicly available data for 206 BFC (British Fashion Council) designers and brands, making the shocking discovery that just 7 have published a climate target and of this cohort, only 5 have a science-based target aligned with the Paris Agreement (2.4% of the 206 BFC members studied).
Commenting on the results from the study, Collective Fashion Justice said:
“This finding is an embarrassment for an industry that considers itself one of the most creative and innovative in the world. This industry has failed to invest in climate action meaningfully, and government policy has failed to necessitate that investment”[ii].
Addressing the issue
The report found that 38% of industry greenhouse gas emissions are tied to irresponsible raw material production, particularly those derived from ruminant animals and fossil fuels. In response the non-profit identified three potential solutions, these include a switch to animal-free product alternatives, something which the IPCC (The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) believe would result in a “substantial reduction” in greenhouse gas emissions[iii]. The other strategies included decarbonisation (with reference to energy-intensive manufacturing that relies on fossil fuels); and degrowth through downsizing the scale and volume of production and consumption.
Further, the authors stressed that:
“If the British fashion industry wants to be taken seriously it needs to set and follow through on science-based targets that prevent climate catastrophe, aligned with the Paris Agreement and ensuring a net-zero 2050, with substantial progress made in the coming years”.
Questions grow over the global fashion industry’s carbon footprint
The findings follow a separate study published just last month which revealed that the scale of fashion’s carbon footprint is likely being masked, as brands fail to offer transparency around their emissions and sustainability practices. Presently estimated to be responsible for anywhere between 2-8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, the $2.4 trillion fashion sector[iv] was criticised in research by Fashion Revolution which found that scope 3 emissions are continuing to rise, despite the introduction of SBTi targets.
The Fashion Revolution report found that of the 250 leading fashion brands studied – all of whom had a turnover of $400 million or more – just 47% had introduced SBTi-validated targets, up from 34% in 2023. Of these 117 brands, 105 provide updates on their progress, with 42 brands reporting increased scope 3 emissions versus their baseline year. Concerningly, almost a quarter of the world’s 250 biggest fashion brands were found to disclose nothing relating to decarbonisation, which the researchers say signifies that the climate crisis is simply not a priority for them.
References
[i] British+fashion+climate+report+2024.pdf (squarespace.com)
[ii] Ibid
[iii] Ibid
[iv] UN Alliance For Sustainable Fashion addresses damage of ‘fast fashion’ (unep.org)
