An extensive poll titled ‘Fashion from Sustainable Forests’ has revealed a strong demand from consumers in major European countries, such as the UK, France, Italy, and Spain, for increased accountability and transparency when it comes to fashion sourcing. The YouGov-conducted survey, which was commissioned by the forest certification organization PEFC International, highlights customers’ dedication to choosing fashion items that are environmentally friendly.
According to the survey’s results, 74% of European consumers think it’s critical that clothing made using man-made cellulosic fibers (MMCFs), or fibers generated from forests, come from sustainably managed forests. Even with this serious worry, just 25% of respondents think fashion firms are doing a good enough job of addressing their worries about the environmental impact of garments created with these fibers.
Furthermore, only 13% of consumers believe that clothing labels in stores provide sufficient information on the sustainability of brands that use fibers produced from forests, like lyocell or viscose. According to a poll, 71% of consumers would prefer to see a label verifying that the forest fibers used in fashion collections originate from sustainably managed forests, which emphasizes the need for transparency.
Furthermore, a survey conducted among adult Europeans revealed that 59% of them were willing to pay extra for a garment made of certified material, with 43% saying they would be willing to spend 10% or more.
Consumers’ worries about the environment are important; 76% of individuals polled said they would be concerned if the fibers from forests used in their clothing had an adverse effect on the environment, such as deforestation, biodiversity loss, or climate change. The same percentage thinks it’s critical for brands to be aware of the source of the fibers obtained from forests that are utilized in their collections. Additionally, 78% of respondents think that fashion labels should step up their sustainability initiatives and ethically acquire fibers from forests for their designs.
Customers clearly respect sustainability because, according to 64% of respondents, procuring from forests that are responsibly managed will raise a brand’s value. Consumer trust is also significantly impacted by independent sustainability certifications; according to research, 50% of consumers place greater trust in independent certification labels than in the sustainability labels provided by the brand. More over 60% of respondents said that a sustainability label on apparel has a favorable impact on their decision to buy, and 68% said they would buy from companies that disclose their sustainable sourcing methods.
