The Higg Index, an open-source sustainability assessment tool for apparel and footwear products, helps companies measure the environmental and social impacts of their supply chains. What is new about the Higg Index 2.0?

Transparency is the new black of fashion. First, we saw a rise in Corporate Social Responsibility, then the focus turned to reducing carbon emissions, and now we have dawned upon a culture of systems-based thinking to assess sustainability. As attitudes shift, companies are searching for streamlined, yet concrete ways to quantifiably assess their impact.

The Higg Index is that tool. Launched in March 2011, along side the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, the tool aims to create a unified and collaborative way for brands to dissect their level of sustainability. Through a series of yes/no questions, companies can examine each tier of their supply chains. The self-assessment tool identifies environmental and social areas of strength and weakness, in which companies then use as a foundation to drive change within areas needing improvement.

The new model, Higg 2.0 was released on December 11, 2013 with new additions to strengthen the measurements. Major additions include questions regarding social and labor components, as well as expanding to the footwear sector.

Snapshot of HiggIndex Program in action.

image: Sustainable Apparel Coalition

Today, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), and Higg Index users, represent a community of more than 100 member, brands, retailers,  manufactures, trade associations, non-profit organizations, and academic affiliations. This multi stakeholder group represents a culture of collaboration to move the apparel industry towards a more sustainable future. In total, the group encompasses an astounding total of over one-third of the global apparel and footwear industry.

The Higg Index is not a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) tool, but does examine all pieces within the life cycle, such as materials, manufacturing, packaging, transportation, use, and end-of-life, showing products through a life cycle systems approach.

The index focuses on three major areas of a company: Brand, Facility and Product. The brand component assesses company culture, and in particular, sustainability ideas around guidelines. For example, “Do guidelines exists for product design?” or  “Are designers asked to come up with, and implement, ideas around reducing packaging?” The facility component is mainly focused on energy, water and waste questions regarding the facilities products are actually manufactured in. And the product component, based largely on Nike’s Materials Sustainability Index, measures use of textiles and other materials that go into a product.

image: Sustainable Apparel Coalition

Using these three branches of a product’s life cycle, the index gives a score 0 – 100 — the greater the number the better the sustainability measure. The test is currently self-monitored, meaning the company conducts the test themselves, because for now the measure is only used internally. But as a member of SAC, companies must be willing to address and take action regarding areas that need improvement.

In the future, SAC promises to expand the tool to include retail outlets, too. And furthermore, once the index is perfected a consumer facing piece will be incorporated.

At the heart of the HIGG index are companies working together sharing their ideas, tools, and strategies–rather than competing with one another.

“In our meetings you’ll see the members are unbelievably collaborative and open about sharing their tools with the rest of the industry,” Jazon Kibbey, Sustainable Apparel Coalition Executive Director said in an interview with Triple Pundit. “I think everybody feels that with sustainability there’s much bigger business gain to have from reducing risk overall in the supply chain, improving efficiencies and developing innovation on a larger scale than from developing tools to be used only within the walls of your company.”

Related on Ecosalon

The Dawn Of The Not So Clueless Fashion Consumer

Eileen Fisher Opens Up About Social Responsibility Through New ‘Ampersand’ Campaign 

H&M Advocates Transparency… Really?

featured image by Juliette Donatelli, with brand splash and logo by Sustainable Apparel Coalition

The post Higg Index Gets A Makeover: Sustainability Stripped Down appeared first on EcoSalon.

ColumnHow has Uniqlo managed to avoid the dreaded “fast fashion” label?

If you don’t shop at Uniqlo, you will soon. The Japanese retailer has already captivated urban centers like New York and San Francisco with ambitious plans to expand to 1,000 U.S. stores in the next decade.

Uniqlo’s specialty is cheap but quality basics, presented in a rainbow of the season’s trendiest colors. But despite the chain’s quick-moving inventory and bargain basement prices, Uniqlo has somehow managed to escape the fast fashion stigma slapped on competitors like H&M, Forever 21, Zara, and Old Navy. This week’s Behind The Label looks at why.

The Uniqlo we know today got its start when Japanese entrepreneur Tadashi Yanai evolved his family suit business into a chain of contemporary activewear stores in 1984. The first store was called Unique Clothing Warehouse, a lengthy moniker that was later shortened to Uniqlo. The chain initially sold brands like Nike and Adidas, but as it expanded, it shifted to more store-brand apparel.

Today, there are more than 835 Uniqlo stores around the world, with seven in the U.S. Over the past decade, parent corporation Fast Retailing has also added brands like Theory, J Brand, Helmut Lang, Princess Tam.Tam, and Comptoir des Cotonniers to its portfolio of companies.

The Good

Uniqlo’s first American retail presence was in New York’s SoHo neighborhood, where it quickly gained a cult following of devotees drawn by the promise of quality items at low prices. Indeed, Uniqlo’s mission is grounded in the promise of a fashion democracy; its tagline reads “Made For All.” But how is Uniqlo able to offer quality to “all” at such low prices?

First, there’s the power of buying in bulk. But Uniqlo doesn’t just work with anyone. Where some fast fashion companies work with up to 300 manufacturers, Uniqlo works with approximately 70, according to its latest corporate social responsibility report. According to Takao Kuwahara, chief executive of Uniqlo U.K., the company takes a hands-on approach in order to ensure quality. “We make a lot of our products in China but, because of our approach to manufacturing, we can maintain very good quality control,” he told The Wall Street Journal. “When we find a factory we want to work with, we commit to buying all of their product for the next five years—but only if they meet our standards. Then we send in our own team of trained craftsmen to teach the factory how we like things done. The team stays until they get it right.”

Then, there’s Uniqlo’s minimalist approach to design and construction. Design director Naoki Takizawa is an alumnus of Issey Miyake, Japan’s most famous minimalist fashion designer. Much like fellow Japanese brand Muji, Uniqlo aims to eliminate the inessential. “The only things that stay are the things you need: It has to protect you from the rain, and heat has to escape,” Takizawa told Fast Company.

And finally, there’s a minimalist approach to inventory. “We have much fewer styles, especially when you compare us with companies like H&M or Topshop or Zara,” Shin Odake, CEO of Uniqlo U.S.A., told New York Magazine. “That’s the secret of why we can get better quality. We try to consolidate the fabric buys as much as possible. H&M sales are bigger, but we have bigger orders. We take huge quantities, and we have negotiation power.”

The Bad

Uniqlo’s minimalist approach to sourcing, design, and inventory may partly explain how the brand is able to offer $5 tees and $19 jeans. But labor is a significant part of the equation too.

Uniqlo has long produced the majority of its clothing in China, but in recent years it has expanded into cheaper manufacturing bases like Vietnam and Bangladesh. According to the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights, Bangladesh offers the cheapest garment labor in the world, at 21 cents an hour. Vietnam’s wages aren’t much higher: 52 cents an hour in cities and 36 cents an hour in rural areas.

Cheaper labor comes at a price, as the recent garment factory collapse and fires in Bangladesh have reminded us. The incidents have prompted major retailers like Walmart, Gap, and H&M to initiate conversations on how to improve Bangladeshi working conditions. Fast Retailing, the world’s fourth largest clothing retailer, isn’t reported to be a participant in these discussions. The company is not a member of the Fair Labor Association, which promotes responsible labor standards, nor does it participate in industry-wide environmental working groups like the Sustainable Apparel Coalition.

Uniqlo’s apathy toward its workers is further evident in this year’s CSR report. The chapter on garment manufacturing focuses more on quality control than quality of life. The strongest statement on fair labor is that Fast Retailing “always produces clothing under socially acceptable working conditions” – hardly a revolutionary commitment.

Uniqlo has also been singled out for having an unhealthy corporate culture. It is currently suing the publisher of a scathing book called the “The Glory and Disgrace of Uniqlo,” which accused the retailer of “extremely harsh, slave-like labor conditions at overseas factories.” And earlier this year, Japanese business magazine Toyo Keizal ran a feature article on Uniqlo with the headline: “Hihei suru shokuba” (“the worn-out workplace”). According to an English summary of the article by the Japan Times, Uniqlo perpetuates the worst stereotypes of Japanese rank-and-file corporate culture. Workers have little decision-making capacity and are expected to follow the company manual to the letter, with harsh punishments for minor infractions. They are regularly expected to contribute “service zangyo,” or voluntary overtime with no pay, even though the practice is forbidden and employees can be demoted or fired if found out. As a result of these and other restrictions, a staggering 53 percent of employees leave the company within three years.

The Questionable

My strategy since become a conscious consumer has been to build a wardrobe around high-quality staples: great-fitting jeans, comfortable tees, versatile black dresses. For this, Uniqlo is heaven-sent. Its styles aren’t driven as much by trend as they are by timelessness. In fact, its new LifeWear collection, released last month, promotes a minimalist wardrobe of 11 basic “projects” that together comprise a full wardrobe.

“We don’t have seasonal fashion themes like other companies. We are much more product focused. Year by year, we are constantly testing, improving and updating,” Yuki Katsuta, Uniqlo’s senior vice president of global research and design, told Business of Fashion last month.

This shopping philosophy resonates with many conscious consumers, which may be why Uniqlo has escaped the dreaded fast fashion label. It’s easy for ethical shoppers to justify a Uniqlo purchase by arguing for its quality, much like slow fashion proponents do.

But Uniqlo’s supply chain is still littered with the social and environmental issues representative of other fast fashion retailers. At the end of the day, Uniqlo still uses cheap labor to make cheaply constructed garments. But because of the brand’s focus on quality, versatility, and minimalist wardrobes, you hopefully won’t be tricked into buying more of them than you need.

Images: Instant Vantage, Sean Davis

The post Behind the Label: Investigating The Social Responsibility Claims Of Uniqlo appeared first on EcoSalon.

Eileen Fisher shows off its company’s commitment to sustainable and ethical business practices. 

Thumbing through Eileen Fisher’s fall eco collection is an intensely tactile experience. There’s thick organic wool knit into a slouchy sweater, hung next to blouses in lightweight textured sheer hemp, fluid bluesign®-certified silk, and an unbelievably soft cashmere from Outer Mongolia, made even more sensuous from a lack of chemical dye.

On another rack, you’ll find stiff, organic, made-in-NYC denim jeans and an organic version of stretch French terry, one of the company’s trademark fabrics. On the accessories front, wrap yourself in a hand-tie-dyed Japanese shibori scarf or try on a pair of vibrant striped wool glovelettes, naturally dyed with plants from designer Cornelia Blümli’s garden.

Eileen Fisher has long been known for producing simple but sophisticated womenswear, and the fall line is no exception. But what most customers don’t know is that the fashion brand also operates with a strong sense of social responsibility. That’s about to change this fall, with the launch of the Eileen Fisher Ampersand campaign, a new marketing initiative that highlights the company’s commitment to sustainable and ethical business practices.

The purpose of the campaign is to give customers a look at what’s “behind the label” of Eileen Fisher items, an idea that is literally translated through new garment hang tags featuring a checklist of the item’s eco-credentials.

In many ways, the name of the campaign embodies the company’s approach to its industry accomplishments. Though Eileen Fisher has long operated under the dictum of “business as a movement” – a phrase coined by Eileen herself – it has been hesitant to shine a spotlight on its social responsibility efforts.

“Subtle is who we are,” explained Candice Reffe, a member of the Core Concept Team at a recent Eileen Fisher breakfast. “What’s bold about the Ampersand campaign is that we’ve decided to actually speak out about things that we’ve been doing for decades, but that no one knew about.”

The hallmark of the campaign is an elegant ampersand symbol (&) used throughout marketing and advertising material to indicate additional information about an item’s production.

“It feels like us,” says Claire Whitcomb, who worked on the campaign. “It’s ‘by the way, here’s a bit more about what we’re doing. Here’s more of the story.'”

The company dives a bit deeper into those stories in a new newsletter available online and in retail locations. It is a refreshing break from typical CSR publications, with a fresh design and creative approach to product storytelling. Reffe, for instance, contributed a poetic image recap of a sourcing trip to China in the last issue, while other articles explore the process of sourcing sustainable denim and provide practical advice on how to hand wash a sweater.

The new hang tags are another key element of the campaign, letting customers know off the bat if the product consists of organic fibers, recycled fibers, or sustainable fibers; whether it is undyed or certified dyed; and if it is Fair Trade or made in the United States.

Highlights of the collection include:

• A nubby organic cotton sweater that is hand-knit by Fair Trade cooperatives in Peru.
• Silks certified by the strict bluesign® standard, which considers both inputs and outputs in the dying process.
• A sensuous “undyed” cashmere sweater, woven from five different types of “dyed by nature” cashmere yarns from goats in Outer Mongolia.
• Naturally-dyed wool glovelettes produced through a collaboration with Barcelona-based designer Cornelia Blümli.

The post Eileen Fisher Opens Up About Social Responsibility Through New ‘Ampersand’ Campaign appeared first on EcoSalon.

Exploring the relationship between corporate mergers and corporate social responsibility.

Timberland’s mission is unique for a shoe company: “to equip people to make a difference in their world.”

Then again, Timberland isn’t your average shoe company. For more than a decade, Timberland has been at the forefront of the corporate social responsibility space, showing the industry that it’s possible for a mainstream brand to operate sustainably without sacrificing profits. “It’s no longer enough to measure business by standards of profit, efficiency and market share,” wrote CEO Jeffrey Schwartz in the company’s first CSR report, published in 2000. “We must also ask how business contributes to social justice, environmental sustainability and the values by which we choose to live.”

On the surface, it seemed that Timberland was successful in achieving that balance, which is why many were surprised when the company announced in 2011 that it was being acquired by VF Corporation, one of the world’s largest lifestyle and apparel conglomerates.

With a portfolio of more than 30 brands including The North Face, Vans, Reef, Nautica, Jansport, Kipling, and 7 For All Mankind, VF seems perfectly positioned to expand the Timberland brand. But as Timberland itself admits, “there’s much more involved than simply adding up the two balance sheets.” This week’s Behind the Label explores the Timberland-VF merger and its implications for Timberland’s social responsibility efforts.

The Good

Timberland’s story dates back to 1952, when shoemaker Nathan Schwartz purchased shares of the Abington Shoe Company, a small manufacturer based out of Abington, Massachusetts. The company mostly focused on contract manufacturing until 1973, when it launched its first guaranteed water-proof boot under the Timberland brand name. Through the second part of the 20th century, Timberland was run as a family business, first by Nathan, and then later by his son Sidney and grandson Jeffrey.

With Jeffrey at the helm, Timberland became a pioneer in corporate social responsibility in the 1990s, with comprehensive reports and ambitious goals that raised the industry bar. Thankfully, it appears that Timberland is adequately equipped with the tools, structure, and leadership to continue working toward its sustainability goals under the VF umbrella.

One tool that will be invaluable is Timberland’s new online responsibility portal, hailed as a breakthrough in corporate transparency upon its launch in 2011. The portal is broken into sections exploring Climate, Product, Factories, and Service, providing status updates as well as hard graphs and data on the company’s progress in areas like carbon emissions, eco-conscious materials, factory conditions, employee engagement in service activities, and even number of trees planted.

For those who don’t wish or aren’t equipped to sift through the data, Timberland also releases a quarterly newsletter that provides summaries of its efforts, as well as podcasts, blog posts, and a section called “Voices of Challenge,” which brings together CSR professionals to discuss issues around sustainability.

“People can go granular as they want or stay as generalist as they’d like,” Mark Newton, Timberland’s Vice President of CSR, told Forbes. “What’s different about the portal is that we are not starting conversations by discussing one of our pillars or metrics but focusing on stories that matter and then getting to the things that are underneath those stories.”

The portal also includes an interactive scorecard that allows stakeholders to view Timberland’s progress toward its CSR goals for 2015. The scorecard reveals the good, including greater use of environmentally preferred materials and growth of the company’s eco-friendly Earthkeepers line, and the bad, like a 4.5% increase in greenhouse gas emissions from 2010 to 2011 (which Timberland recognizes as a function of increased growth and employee air travel).

The Bad

During the acquisition process, VF Corporation has indicated a desire to continue working toward Timberland’s sustainability goals. “Regardless of what happens post-merger, we are all in this together,” Newton told Forbes. “Our values are integrated into all of us and everyone who works here.”

However, certain public comments and actions indicate that the transition process may have a larger impact on Timberland’s CSR efforts than leadership lets on. For one, it’s a given that VF’s multinational corporate interests will differ somewhat from Timberland’s triple bottom line approach. In a New York Times Dealbook article published at the start of the merger, it appeared that VF’s approach to the acquisition was primarily profit-driven.

VF executives appeared confident that it could wring profits by improving Timberland’s business performance, primarily by folding it into the apparel giant’s global platform and cutting costs. On an investor call with analysts, VF’s chief financial officer, Bob Shearer, said his company planned to raise its new acquisition’s operating margin to 15 percent, in line with the rest of the conglomerate’s brands.

Part of this “folding in” is the replacement of Timberland’s long-standing, well-respected, and notoriously strict factory Code of Conduct with VF’s Terms of Engagement and Global Compliance Principles, the same principles in place across all 30 of the company’s brands. According to Timberland, this will allow for a two-step approach to factory compliance: factory inspections and audits by the VF team, followed by remediation, training, and “beyond compliance” efforts from Timberland’s Supplier Sustainability Team. The success of this new approach is yet to be seen, but one has to wonder how continued “cost-cutting measures” will impact the socially responsible supply chain that Timberland already has in place.

The Questionable

Before the merger, Timberland was on oft-cited example of a homegrown family business that successfully grew into a mainstream brand, without sacrificing its commitment to sustainable business practices. However, comments from Schwartz before his departure from the company revealed that the endeavor was far from simple:

For three generations, we’ve tried to create and master a weird new kind of modern dance—the one that blends the foxtrot of “fiduciary responsibility to shareholders” with the tango of “authentic brand building,” with the Alvin Ailey contortion of “sustainable for profit business practice” … For 30 years, we’ve been trying, fighting, struggling, to choreograph the intricate interaction between shareholder value, consumer demand, and social accountability. I have the scars, and the long list of failed efforts, incomplete outcomes, unrealized dreams and frustrated ambitions before my eyes all the time that reflect this passionate effort. 

By several accounts, it seems that Timberland’s troubles lay in its ability to scale its operations so as to continue operating sustainably while maintaining its responsibility to shareholders as a publicly traded company. The best option, it seems, was to align itself with a larger conglomerate, like the VF Corporation, that would be able to shepherd the company to the next level. In a research memo from Sterne Agee cited in Dealbook, analysts said that they “regard Timberland as a high-quality brand that has been operationally challenged for a number of years,” and that “VF has exhibited a strong track record and the capabilities to rectify many of the historical problems.”

Judging from his heartfelt farewell blog post, Schwartz seemed to agree with that analysis. He also seemed confident that he was leaving Timberland in the right hands, and that VF Corporation would be able to grow Timberland without abandoning the social responsibility that was central to its mission.

To illustrate his confidence, Schwartz shared a story from an employee town hall meeting that took place during the changing of hands.

An environmental activist in our ranks rose, way in the back, to ask the new guy, the Boss to Be, about sustainability.

“Tell us, please, why sustainability is important to you.”

Wow. That is town hall democracy the way Rockwell painted it. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide — respectful, but a “no quarter granted” question.

And the man with whom I negotiated hard and long for the best possible deal for shareholders stood his ground, and answered, authentically and naturally. “The answer is simple—we believe that sustainability is good for the business and good for the world environmentally.”

… In this poignant moment of transition, from a business run by my family for three generations to a business to be run by relative strangers – here is the CEO of a 10B$ powerhouse, talking about sustainability simply and easily — good for business, good for the earth. And he means what he says. 

Corporate acquisitions of sustainable brands tend to instinctually make me cringe. But in some cases, I have to wonder if they can actually be a positive thing, not only for the companies in question but also for the industry as a whole.

Although he’s no longer at the helm of Timberland, Schwartz certainly seems hopeful that this corporate undertaking is a step in the right direction.

It strikes me, hard, as I sit there — 30 years later, a vitally important conversation has shifted … Used to be, “what in the world does for-profit business have to do with social issues? That’s the purview of the government or the church.” And yet here, and now — I hear this powerful leader telling my colleagues, announcing to the whole damn world, that the question is not “if” corporations should be involved in questions of sustainability — not “if,” only “how.”  Thirty years later–the corporate conversation turns from “if” to “how.” 

SEE ALSO:

Behind the Label: H&M’s Conscious Collection

Behind the Label: Levi Strauss’ E-Valuate Program

Behind the Label: TOMS’ One for One Campaign

Behind the Label: Puma’s Vision and Clever Little Bag

Behind the Label: Anthropologie’s Made In Kind

Behind the Label: Is Stella McCartney A Sustainable Brand?

Behind the Label: Tommy Hilfiger’s Promise Collection

Behind the Label: Alternative Apparel

Read more Behind the Label here.

The post Behind The Label: Timberland’s CSR After the VF Merger appeared first on EcoSalon.

Tips to celebrate Earth Day every day.

Happy Earth Day. If your community is hosting one of many Earth Day events this weekend, have fun – and we hope the weather is nice. But Earth Day is just one day, and there are many things you can do all year around to live a more conscious, eco-friendly life. Here are some actions you can take anytime.

Changes at Home

• Make sure your home is in good repair. Leaky faucets and loose window seals waste energy. Exchange outdated appliances for energy efficient models. Use fluorescent bulbs in lamps and dimmers to conserve electricity, and turn down the thermostat. Have your furnace checked out before winter to ensure it’s in good working condition.
• Small changes around the house can reduce energy consumption, waste and toxins. Unplug devices when they aren’t in use, even chargers left plugged in and devices on standby use power. Turn down your water heater by a few degrees. Wash only full loads in the washer and dishwasher. Instead of using paper towels, use cloth dish towels instead. Carry your beverages in refillable stainless steel containers. Make sure your home is properly ventilated to discourage mold growth and guard against hazardous conditions when using gas stoves, kerosene or burning wood.
• Cut down on clutter. Unsubscribe from databases to eliminate junk mail. Scan documents and store photos electronically. Pay your bills and file your taxes online. Read news online instead of receiving print magazines.

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

• Recycle all materials you can. Call 1-800-RECYCLE or visit Earth911 to find recycling centers near your home.
• Donate electronic devices that are still in working order to schools and charities. Those that no longer work should be recycled correctly.
• Streamline your belongings. Donate everything that you don’t use frequently.

Shop Responsibly

• Buy only when necessary. Check Craigslist and eBay for quality used items. Borrow things that you don’t need to use often instead of buying. When you do buy, purchase a few high quality items made with recycled content.
• Support local businesses and buy local products. It helps the economy and reduces distribution costs. Support green businesses and eco-friendly products. Buy fresh fruits and vegetables from local farmers’ markets.
• Carry your own reusable bags to stores. Buy in bulk and reduce packaging. Use refillable containers.
• Buy eco-friendly products. Use green cleaning products (here is a good list), and buy personal hygiene and cosmetic products that have environmentally friendly ingredients and no added perfumes. Buy and wear as little as possible.
• Buy quality clothing. Aim for classic styles that can be worn for a long time. Avoid replacing your wardrobe frequently.
• Climate Counts ranks companies on their eco-friendiness. If you need to buy a product, it’s worth checking their score and there is an iPhone app available on iTunes.

Going Out

• Use public transportation and carpool when possible. Choose the most fuel-efficient car that fits your needs. Here are some ways you can save at the pump.
• When eating out, choose restaurants that use local produce and meat.
• Leave no trace behind when camping or hiking. Report any environmental damage to authorities.

Action

• Join environmental organizations and learn about current environmental issues. Communicate your point of view to local and state government, and encourage action. If you are involved in the education system, find a way to incorporate environmental studies into the curriculum.
• If your company hasn’t already started, suggest they develop a CSR strategy. Share what you’ve learned with friends and family. If more people make even a few small changes, it can all add up to a big difference.

Image: Sarah Ackerman

The post Earth Day – All Year Round appeared first on EcoSalon.

A few years ago, “eco fashion” became the hottest buzzword. The media in particular loved it and used every opportunity available to position it as the hottest trend. Recall those “Green is the New Black” headlines everywhere? Fast forward to today, and we know that eco fashion is definitely not a trend. It is a movement, and one that is taking the world by storm.

How so? Well for starters, a growing number of designers are now sourcing more sustainable fabrics than a few years ago, and the variety and quantity of those fabrics has grown out of this demand. An increasing number of brands and retailers are now engaged in ethical sourcing, and are working with their suppliers to create benchmarks and standards. Many companies now understand the benefits of corporate social responsibility (CSR), even if their product or service is not “green”.

Organic Exchange (OE) offers more evidence of this eco fashion movement. According to their Organic Cotton Market Report, global sales of organic cotton apparel and textiles has grown by $1 billion in 2009, which amounts to a 35 percent increase over 2008. And at the same time that organic cotton sales have grown, overall cotton clothing and home textiles sales have shrunk by seven percent.

However, the rise of organic cotton has been steady for nearly a decade – on average by 40 percent each year since 2001. You just didn’t hear much about it because it wasn’t deemed important enough by mainstream media and industry. But that seems to be changing.

Organic Exchange estimates that the organic cotton market will continue to grow at this steady pace of 20-40 percent – both this year and next, to about $6 billion; and that the organic cotton market has been driven largely by consumer interest in “green” products, and by retailers and companies looking to offer more organic options.

So just who are the top organic cotton buyers from 2009 according to the OE report? You might be shocked to learn that it’s some of the biggest names in retail, including Nike, Walmart and Adidas.

But really, this isn’t all that surprising when you consider the report Exporting Textiles: March to Sustainability, that recently profiled the top brands and retailers who are implementing environmental sustainability throughout their global supply chains. Among the 19 companies profiled are once again, Nike, Walmart and Adidas! So what exactly are these companies doing to be given such accolades? Let’s take a look.

Adidas adheres to the ISO14001 standard and has an internal environmental benchmarking assessment that they use to collect data from their suppliers. Their top three sustainability priorities are embedding environmental sustainability across the business, effectively managing business risks and social compliance in the supply chain, and extending engagement internally and externally.

Walmart, as we all know, has issued their Sustainability Index, which asks their suppliers a series of questions as they relate to social and environmental practices. They also carry GOTS certification on organic textiles (although questionable to what degree) and their focus on energy efficiency is now shifting toward their suppliers.

Nike uses a few internal tools such as Material Analysis Tool (MAT) and Considered Index to evaluate its life cycle impacts. They have a water program, and have integrated energy efficiency practices at supplier factories.

According to this report, which focuses primarily on energy efficiency, carbon emissions, water and chemical footprint as well as logistics, these three companies rank in the top 5 (Levi Strauss & Co. and Marks & Spencer round out the list).

And so the evidence is mounting. It becomes clearer every day that eco fashion is a movement, and one that is gaining solid ground. I look forward to actively watching as more and more of the big brands and retailers move toward increased sustainability, motivated by people like us who demand quality and ethics from the products we choose to buy.

Image: adifansnet

The post Building the Case for Eco Fashion as a Movement appeared first on EcoSalon.

I recently attended the Ethical Sourcing Forum in NYC to gain a deeper understanding of what big businesses are doing in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR), particularly as it relates to their supply chain.

During the forum, I participated in panels and workshops with the likes of Wal-Mart, L’Oreal, Hudson Bay Company, Eileen Fisher, Jones Apparel, Ralph Lauren, and Nordstrom to name a few. These are all companies who for many years have been manufacturing goods – some domestically, some overseas, and some use both methods. And when it comes to labor rights and ethical sourcing, most of them don’t have the best track record. We all remember when the curtain was pulled back on Nike in the late “˜90s.

Regardless, I admit there was something special about the event, like witnessing collaborative efforts by activist groups like the Maquila Solidarity Network, and government bodies such as the U.S. Department of Labor working with large corporations to solve their really big problems.

You may have gathered from my writing thus far, that there are some things I feel troubled about. Although my attempt to get closer to the truth around ethical sourcing was not in vain, a whole new set of questions came up for me during the forum.

1. Should I applaud these companies for finally getting around to cleaning up the very messes they created?
2. Do their efforts now absolve them of past actions?
3. Can I (and others) truly forgive and forget their history?

It is clear these companies aren’t doing enough. Not when you consider how much power they actually have to affect real change. On the other hand, they are the first to admit that they can be doing more. They just think this is a good place to start. Do you agree?

I would like to see more discussion around environmental impacts.

Let’s talk about deforestation and pollution, waste, the use of toxic chemicals, destruction of entire ecosystems and communities. When is that conversation going to take place? And what about that third, and lesser known “R” called reduce? Obviously this is not a word or topic of discussion at forums like the ESF, because at the end of the day, these corporations want us to do the exact opposite. They want us to consume more and more of their products.

I remember reading, “You can’t have a sustainable world without a sustainable Wal-Mart”. And while I totally get this statement, I’m not entirely convinced. A big part of me dislikes the fact that the Wal-Mart’s of the world exist in the first place.  But the reality is they do. And unfortunately, millions of people shop there every year.

Images: Mountain Top Removal Mining and kevindooley

The post A Sustainable World = A Sustainable Wal-Mart? appeared first on EcoSalon.