Textile Exchange

Cheap and versatile polyester has underpinned both the fashion industry’s growth and its worsening environmental footprint. Efforts to switch to recycled fibre are stalled, new data show.

The industry needs to ditch its reliance on fossil-fuel-based materials like polyester in order to meet climate targets, according to a new report from Textile Exchange.

Without greater commitment and investment from brands, the industry faces a 133 million tonne shortfall in supply of lower-impact materials in 2030, according to a new report.

While most brands have banned fur, animal welfare is rarely discussed when it comes to more mainstream and lucrative fabrics like leather.

As COP15 puts biodiversity in the spotlight, fashion companies from H&M to Kering are re-upping their commitments to protecting and restoring nature. But tackling the issue in earnest will require industry-wide reform.

Big brands from Adidas to Patagonia are on track to eliminate virgin polyester from their products. But the pivot to materials mostly made from recycled plastic bottles is an imperfect solution.

Big brands are buying more recycled polyester, better cotton and responsible leather than ever. But progress is precarious and more radical action is needed to really transform the industry’s supply chains, a new report from Textile Exchange finds.

Achieving the ambitions laid out at the UN climate summit that ended this week will require a wholesale transformation of the way the fashion industry operates. Are business leaders ready?

The UN Fashion Charter upgraded its targets to drastically slash emissions by the end of the decade and added LVMH as a signatory.

The industry’s impact on deforestation and biodiversity loss is coming into focus as efforts to tackle global warming look beyond emissions.