Some clothing industries are using chemicals in their production processes with possibly dangerous consequences to the environment and human health. Are you wearing clothes that are harmful to nature?

The clothes we are wearing right now may contain chemicals that can be dangerous for the environment and human health. Different brands have committed to stop using those chemicals in their production processes by 2020, but others have not taken a stance on the matter.

The scandal of hazardous chemicals came out in 2011, when the environmentalist group Greenpeace released the Dirty Laundry report, which exposed the fact that textile manufacturers in China discharged hazardous chemicals into the water. When discharged into the rivers, these chemicals accumulate in the soil and vegetation and are ingested by animals that often serve as food for humans. PFC, NPE, Antimony and Phthalates are chemicals that Greenpeace found in the investigation. The effects of these range from risk of cancer and high cholesterol to toxicity for reproductive development in mammals.

Greenpeace’s Detox campaign

Since 2011, Greenpeace has been conducting the “Detox” campaign, putting pressure on clothing brands to stop using these chemicals. The campaign has been supported by personalities from the fashion industry but also put heavy weighting on online petitions. It’s hard to put direct pressure on the clothing firms, but you can make your voice count by enhancing the environmentally friendly brands that have committed to detox.

 

Brands have surrendered to the pressure

To this point, some firms have committed to stop using the chemicals in their production processes by the end of 2020. Puma is the latest to join the group. Last November, the German firm stated that “We are committed to eliminate all PFCs across our global supply-chain by no later than 1 January 2015.”

Different brands submitted to the pressure of the environmentalist group and have committed to stop using chemicals by 2020, but others still remain silent. Greenpeace conducted several investigations such as the Polluting paradise and The big fashion stitch up which showed that different brands are still using chemicals in their water cycles, but the firms have not acknowledged the use of the chemicals to date.

 

These are the brands investigated by Greenpeace that have not yet admitted the use of chemicals in their clothes:

Brands committed to detox by 2020:

 

 

Find more information about Greenpeace’s Detox campaign here