“We applaud H&M, Zara and Benetton for leading the way and setting a new standard in toxic free fashion,” said Kirsten Brodde, Head of the Detox My Fashion campaign at Greenpeace Germany. “These companies prove that cleaning up the fashion industry is possible – both for large and medium-sized companies.”
“Our assessment shows that the textile industry as a whole is not doing enough to go toxic-free. 16 out of the 19 brands assessed are stumbling over transparency issues or failing to eliminate toxic chemicals; with only three years left they must speed up now if they’re to meet their 2020 deadlines,” said Brodde.
The Detox Catwalk assesses how committed companies have performed against key criteria, including eliminating known hazardous chemicals from their products and manufacturing processes, disclosing pollution information and publishing suppliers’ lists.
While Victoria’s Secret, Esprit, Nike and LiNing scored in the lowest “Faux Pas” category, another 12 Detox committed brands find themselves in the middle “Evolution Mode” category. These include adidas, Burberry, Levi’s, Primark and Puma which are not banning enough hazardous chemicals and rely on the flawed chemical list from the industry group Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC). This list is missing important substances like PFCs and solvents like Dimethylformamide (DMF).
Companies like C&A, Fast Retailing, G-Star, Mango, and Miroglio score higher within the same “Evolution Mode” group, either for better chemicals management or greater supply chain transparency.
“A major step forward this year is that committed companies are truly lifting the veil on their supply chains. Companies are publishing complete suppliers’ lists, which shows a trend for long-term relationships with suppliers networks, built on mutual trust. That is crucial for implementing the Detox programme,” said Brodde.
The Greenpeace Detox campaign demands fashion brands commit to zero discharge of all hazardous chemicals by 2020 and requires their suppliers to disclose the releases of toxic chemicals from their facilities to communities at the site of the water pollution.
Tackling water pollution is getting ever more urgent, especially in textile production countries such as China where more than 80 percent of underground water is unsafe for drinking. Four-fifths of China's water from wells is not safe because of pollution, according to an analysis published by the Chinese Water Resources Ministry this year. China’s textile industry is one of the largest industrial water polluters in the country.
The corporate action has sparked policy change in manufacturing countries such as China, where harmful chemicals used in the textile sector such as PFCs, nonylphenols and phthalates have been included for regulation on the 12th Five-Year Plan for the Prevention and Control of Environmental Risk of Chemicals.
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Notes to Editors:
1. The full ranking of companies is here: http://greenpeace.org/detoxcatwalk
2. The 19 Detox-committed companies assessed via the Catwalk, as "Avant-Garde", "Evolution Mode" and "Faux Pas", represent approximately 10% of the estimated US$1.7 trillion global annual (2013) apparel and footwear market. http://go.euromonitor.com/rs/euromonitorinternational/images/key-highlights-apparel-footwear-2014.pdf
3. This year’s Detox Catwalk includes all Detox-committed brands except for the retailers and the companies with very recent commitments. Greenpeace will continue assessing and re-testing all the Detox committed companies, including those in other sectors, in the future.
4. The water study of the Chinese Water Resources Ministry can be found here: http://www.mwr.gov.cn/english/
5. The Chinese 12th Five-Year Plan for the Prevention and Control of Environmental Risk of Chemicals: http://www.cciced.net/encciced/newscenter/latestnews/201302/t20130225_248445.html
Media Contact:
Kirsten Brodde, Head of the Greenpeace Detox My Fashion campaign, 
, phone: +49 170 429 9718
Greenpeace International Press Desk, 
, phone: +31 (0) 20 718 2470 (available 24 hours)