Following a brand audit in Accra, Greenpeace calls for producer accountability and stronger protection for Ghana’s clothing economy, public health and the environment.

Accra, 7th October – Greenpeace today revealed the findings of a brand audit of discarded clothing in Ghana and unveiled an anti fast fashion installation, calling on fashion companies to take responsibility for textile waste and on the government to strengthen protections for local businesses and communities.

The audit examined 201 discarded garments collected from James Town Beach, Kantamanto and Agbogbloshie with Primark, Marks & Spencer and H&M among the brands identified.

Made from discarded garments, the six meters billboard shows a model with a dress that transcends into the fashion waste on the ground underneath. The massive skirt is sewed out of hundreds of garments which risk ending up in a landfill and is designed and crafted by The Revival, upcycler collective based at the Katamanto market. 

“For too long, Africa has been treated as the world’s landfill for cheap, disposable clothing. We want to reverse the flow: return this fast fashion to the very brands that created it, sending a clear message that our communities will no longer foot the bill for corporate overproduction.” said Hellen Dena, Greenpeace Africa’s Plastics Project Lead.

The costs extend beyond lost income. Greenpeace’s report, Fast Fashion, Slow Poison, found that 89% of 164 discarded garments tested at three dumpsites in greater Accra contained synthetic fibres, which can shed microplastics into soil, waterways and the ocean. Air testing at three public washhouses in Old Fadama, where discarded clothing was burned as fuel, also detected benzene, a known human carcinogen.

For businesses trading in second-hand clothing, the quality of a bale determines how much value can be recovered through resale, repair and remaking. Unusable garments often leave traders facing losses and additional disposal costs, undermining the livelihoods that depend on this trade.

“Traders are absorbing the cost of a system they do not control, gambling on bales that contain so much waste that some are falling into debt because they cannot make a profit. But they are not the only ones paying. What cannot be sold is dumped, burned or washed into drains, and it ends up in our lagoons and along our coastline. Ghana is carrying the environmental burden of waste produced elsewhere, and the people closest to it carry the greatest risk to their health and their livelihoods.” said Sam Quashie-Idun, Greenpeace Africa’s Head of Investigations. 

Greenpeace is calling for stronger safeguards against unusable textile imports, transparent grading and trading practices, and Extended Producer Responsibility. These measures should be developed with traders and workers, alongside investment in Ghanaian textile production, traditional craftsmanship, repair and reuse.

“Responsibility cannot stop when clothes leave Europe. Fast fashion brands cannot hide from their own overproduction anymore. If they make a mess, they must clean it up. There is no reason why upcyclers in for example Ghana should work with less good garments than upcyclers in the global north.” said Gustav Martner, Senior Creative Lead, Greenpeace Nordic.

Greenpeace and its partners will submit a petition signed by over 25,000 people to Ghana’s Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, calling for a ban on unusable textile waste and for fashion companies to take responsibility for the waste associated with their products. The handover will urge government action to protect traders’ livelihoods, communities’ health and Ghana’s local textile industry.

ENDS

Notes to editors

  • New brand audit: The audit covered 201 garments collected in James Town Beach, Kantamanto and Agbogbloshie from 2nd to 5th October. Findings describe the sampled garments. Identifying a brand label does not establish who exported or discarded that item.
  • Earlier environmental and health research: The 2024 report’s synthetic-fibre finding cited above concerns 164 garments collected in October 2023 through non-random sampling at three dumpsites. It does not represent all clothing imports. Air testing covered three washhouses and measured pollutants, rather than illness in the population. See the research methodology and findings.
  • Media materials: The new audit summary, captioned photographs and footage of the cleanup and installation are available here. 
  • Interviews: Greenpeace spokespeople and local actors are available.

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