How to solve the carbon crisis in fast fashion

The fashion industry, notorious for its significant environmental impact, accounts for 2-8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. It is a major consumer of water and a source of pollution and waste. Despite pledges from major brands to reduce their carbon footprint, the bulk of the damage stems from manufacturing processes, which require substantial investment to transform.

Epic Group, a Hong Kong-based apparel producer with operations in Bangladesh, Jordan, and Ethiopia, is leading the charge to mitigate the fashion sector’s ecological harm. Collaborating with both local and international entities, Epic Group aims to unite brands, retailers, manufacturers, and service providers in a collective effort to foster industry-wide sustainability.

Vidhura Ralapanawe, the company’s executive vice president, emphasizes the importance of symbiotic relationships between brands and manufacturers. He advocates for long-term partnerships and commercially viable conditions that acknowledge the financial risks manufacturers undertake.

The fashion industry’s goal to halve emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero by 2050 has seen limited progress. The challenge of decarbonization is immense, outstripping the funds currently available. It is clear that a concerted effort and innovative solutions are necessary to address the carbon crisis in fast fashion.

Fashion consumption harms environment significantly

Oxfam reports that the UK’s monthly fashion consumption equals the carbon emissions of 900 global flights. The environmental impact of producing a single cotton shirt is comparable to a 35-kilometer car ride. As consumer demand for the latest fashion trends surges, the industry’s carbon footprint worsens.

Starting next year, EU legislation will require companies to disclose and address emissions within their supply chains. With manufacturing accounting for approximately 80% of the clothing sector’s emissions, textile and apparel manufacturers are urging brands to help fund the transition to low-carbon technologies and processes.

As global fashion brands pledge to cut emissions and aim for net-zero by 2050, the industry faces the challenge of balancing fashion’s fast pace with the urgent need for sustainability.

The Transformers Foundation, a New York-based think tank for denim stakeholders, recently released a report advocating for unified efforts towards an environmental shift in the industry.

Kim van der Weerd, the foundation’s chief information officer, highlighted a critical issue: the assumption that suppliers should finance the necessary upgrades to their facilities. He contends that this expectation is both unrealistic and inequitable, given that suppliers generally have fewer resources than major brands.

Experts suggest that resolving the main dispute—determining who is responsible for action and who has the financial capacity—could unlock the stalemate. The proposed solution is to entrust suppliers with overseeing the changes while ensuring that brands contribute significantly to the transformation.

Pay for ambitions

The Apparel Impact Institute (AII), a North American think tank that promotes sustainable investing, created the Fashion Climate Fund last year, which mobilized $250 million with the aim of unlocking $2 billion in funding and reducing 150 million tonnes of carbon from fashion over the next three decades.

Textile manufacturers seek diverse financing options from the brands they supply to facilitate the establishment of cleaner production lines. Mohiuddin Rubel, director of Bangladesh's BGMEA, suggests fashion brands can aid suppliers with subsidies, low-interest loans, and direct investments.

Kurt Kipka, AII's director of impact, emphasizes the need for accessible and affordable climate finance for a low-carbon future in fashion, acknowledging the substantial investment required, as highlighted in an AII report aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050.

Apparel manufacturers say making climate finance available, accessible and affordable for suppliers is essential to a low-carbon future for fashion. But the amounts involved are considerable. According to an AII report, if the industry wants to reach net zero emissions by 2050, it will need more than a billion dollars of investment.

No pre-defined templates

Aside from a funding shortfall, the fashion industry grapples with a significant barrier to swift decarbonization—the diverse array of challenges faced by its numerous suppliers. In densely populated Bangladesh, limited horizontal expansion makes it challenging for suppliers to generate sufficient rooftop solar power.

Meanwhile, in Pakistan, factories struggle to engage third-party renewable energy providers for emission reductions. The Transformers Foundation report highlights the industry's varied landscape, emphasizing that a uniform approach won't suffice. Epic Group's Ralapanawe notes differing needs between large and small suppliers, requiring a mix of financial tools.

In other words, one size does not fit all. “If our approach is to take the collective objective of the Paris Agreement and divide it equally among companies without regard to viability, we will fail,” says van der Weerd, from the denim industry think tank.

Kurt Kipka of the Apparel Impact Institute stresses the importance of flexible funding to address the diverse decarbonization efforts across the industry.

“It is imperative that we meet industry and partners where they are — based on the different needs of leading facilities and facilities that are just beginning the decarbonization journey,” he concludes.

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