Fashion Industry Falling Short on Decarbonization Goals

A recent report has revealed that nearly a quarter of the world’s leading fashion brands, including big names like Reebok, Tom Ford, and DKNY, lack public decarbonization plans. This lack of commitment to reducing carbon emissions is concerning, given the fashion industry’s significant environmental impact, from Pollution and waste to overconsumption driven by fast fashion.

The report, titled “What Fuels Fashion?,” assessed 250 major fashion brands, each with an annual turnover of $400 million or more. These brands were evaluated on 70 sustainability criteria, including emissions targets, supply chain transparency, and renewable energy usage. Shockingly, Reebok, Tom Ford, and DKNY scored a dismal 0% in decarbonization efforts, while Urban Outfitters and Dolce & Gabbana scored only 3%.

In contrast, Puma, Gucci, and H&M led the rankings with scores of 75%, 74%, and 61% respectively. However, only four brands met the United Nations’ emissions reduction targets. Of the 250 brands evaluated, 117 had set decarbonization goals, but just 105 provided progress updates, with 42 reporting an increase in scope-3 emissions compared to their baseline year.

The report highlighted that 86% of companies have not set a public coal phaseout target, and 94% lack a public renewable energy target. Transparency is also an issue, with less than half of the brands disclosing their energy sources. Additionally, there is significant concern over the volume of clothing produced, much of which ends up in landfills. Most major brands (89%) do not disclose their annual clothing production figures.

Supply chain workers, particularly in countries like Bangladesh, are at significant risk due to Climate change, with extreme weather events threatening nearly a million jobs in the sector. Despite this, only 3% of major fashion brands report efforts to financially Support workers affected by the climate crisis.

Maeve Galvin, global policy and campaigns director at Fashion Revolution, urged the fashion industry to invest at least 2% of their revenue in clean, renewable energy and worker Support. This, she argued, would help mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis while also addressing poverty and inequality within supply chains.

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