According to a recent report by the artificial intelligence-enabled consumer intelligence platform Ipsos Synthesio, online consumers in the United Kingdom, the United States, and France have taken to social media to express their concern about the overall environmental impact of the fashion industry, from textile waste to pollution and carbon dioxide emissions.
Synthesio Inc’s parent company, Ipsos Group, is an international market research and consultancy corporation located in Paris.
According to the study, online talks about fast fashion surged by 52% between 2020 and 2022, and unfavorable attitude about the issue has constantly increased.
Cheap, trendy apparel is being scrutinized in social media debates, not only for its environmental effect but also for how fast fashion businesses treat their workers, according to the report.
Social media users are concerned with sustainable products, alternatives, and purchasing habits. Between 2020 and 2022, sustainable fashion accounted for 37.6% of fashion-related talks in the three nations, while upcycling accounted for 16.9%.
The number of sustainable fashion mentions climbed by an average of 13% in 2022, with the United Kingdom experiencing the biggest rise (16%).
Textiles 2030 is a non-profit program run by Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) that aims to involve UK fashion and textile companies in collaborative climate action.
So far, 17 enterprises representing more than half of UK apparel and textile sales have signed the agreement, pledging to cut their carbon footprint by 50% and water footprint by 30%.
The project also includes a ‘Roadmap to 2030,’ which directs members on how to meet these lofty goals.
While the program does not currently contain textile waste objectives, it does want to set a target for lowering the number of virgin textiles used by 2025.
The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), as well as several brands and retailers, as well as reuse and recycling agencies, have signed the agreement.
These promises are being fulfilled in the retail industry. According to an Ipsos news release, the number of in-store and online clothing and textile take-back programs, as well as bring banks, has grown since 2019.
These efforts contribute to the transition to a more circular economy by extending the usable life of textile items and increasing reuse and recycling.
However, such strategies applied by merchants now have considerable drawbacks.
First, public participation in shop takeback programs is limited, with only 2% of consumers using this approach to donate their old items.
Furthermore, in a WRAP consumer survey, 15% of respondents who had disposed of an item via a retailer take-back scheme in their most recent big clear-out stated that they always bought new clothing at the time of dropping off their unwanted clothing items, and another 20% stated that they did so frequently.
According to the press release, this shows that such systems may inadvertently stimulate further textile use.
WRAP has published a paper on textile policy alternatives, together with a cost-benefit analysis, offering specific insights into steps that might be implemented to achieve a more sustainable future.
The paper underlines the importance of transitioning to a circular economy, in which materials are reused for extended periods and goods are refurbished.
