Wool’s Role In Sustainable Fashion
Wool has been utilized for centuries, and it is one of the oldest techniques to craft a dress. Wool is obtained from the animals like sheep and lambs. It is a fiber that is soft and warm for the human body. Sustainable Fashion is relatively a new term in which companies are held liable for utilizing natural resources considered high. Media is stronger than ever, and every move of these companies is monitored. The entire structure has been changed as companies now have to re-design their strategies for their raw material utilization and labor practices. A new trend is setting up of using recycle items instead of aggressively utilizing natural resources. They are now designing new ways to provide sustainable products that are recyclable and not harmful to the environment. They are also focusing on changing the way of treating the labor force. Think tanks of Governments are also working and focusing on utilizing resources in a sustainable manner, including clothing. European Union is also involved in such activities and focusing on the reusing of cloths and their disposition.
Why is Sustainable Fashion Inevitable to Ignore?
Sustainable Fashion is an effort to maintain balance in the world in terms of utilizing resources for clothing. It is a way to entirely change the focus from optimal production to a sustainable environment. Saving the earth is now more important than doubling the profits. An emergency is yet to come, and to avoid such circumstances; the authorities are working in advance. Industrialization has already damaged the earth and its environment; therefore, an effort has been made to force the companies not to enter the irrecoverable phase. It doesn’t just involve the clothing products but restricting the entire fashion industry.
How wool affects the Sustainable Fashion
IWTO, the Industrial Wool Textile Organization, is trying to regulate wool production and highlights its effects on the environment. Wool is a natural fiber, and utilizing it sustainably is quite necessary. It is a fact that the life of wool is relatively longer than any of the available natural fiber. It is also very durable and easy to maintain. Wool is also washed less time than any other fabric. It is also evident that wool is also very frequent to recycle. This fiber is also not hurting our environment as it has no contribution towards microplastic pollution. In short, wool is an ideal contender to be utilized as compared to other fibers. It has far less impact on our environment and has more life.
What is Traceable Wool, and how important is it for the environment?
The fashion Industry comprises many networks to produce and transport clothing to the consumers. Many businesses are involved in the entire process of delivering the product. Traceability is important as the consumer must know the origin and the required processes to produce and deliver the product. It is important to know where the wool has been generated in your favorite sweater. You can trace the wool even though there are some complex supply chain structures. Traceability is sometimes used as an alternative for transparency as there have been some incidents that lead to the deaths of the labor force. 2019 was the year when this concept of traceability got highlighted. After that, many companies are adopting new plans to make their products traceable. The young generation is not behaving like their predecessors as they are more concerned about the origin of the product and how they are provided. There are significant links between traceability and their behavior of shopping. Big Brands must act as responsible persons and offer traceability with full arms; otherwise, they will lose a major chunk of their consumers. There must have a narrative not to earn profits at the expense of the environment. The supply chain of the garments must be opened to everyone, and the products are also easily traceable.
How are Companies setting up the example for Wool Traceability?
Companies are making their standards to provide their supply chain information to inform the consumers how and what they are provided with, like the brand of ASKET that provides all the information to the consumer regarding the production and supply chain of the products. According to them, they are 80% traceable, which is quite a substantial figure. They give all the information in a single place so to ease the process for the consumers. According to them, the garment industry requires a rigorous change as it consumes some of the essential natural resources and labor. It is also a fact that now consumers are buying twice the number of clothes compared to some decades ago upon that they are not wearing it for too long. This behavior is causing damage to the environment at the unscalable level. Wool is also being used to make a lot of warm clothes.
How are Designers Changing the Fashion Industry?
Another Example of wool traceability is the Richard Malone. He introduced the entire wool collection in 2020, having 100% traceability. His garments were far less harmful to the environment. He used the unconventional method for dyeing, not utilizing the chemicals. They were mainly plant-based dyeing methods that were eco-friendly. According to him, mass production of garments is a crime against humanity as it exploits natural resources and human resources. Such behavior has to be the norm of the fashion industry. In the past, the Industrial revolution has changed the way we did business. But it completely ignored the sustainable production and supply process. We need to change our thinking towards the garments. Business people have to be transparent and completely open about their production methods. We as a consumer should demand such information otherwise boycott them. Our behavior and thinking need a serious transformation, helping our environment to get healthy again. Our future relies on our current behavior. Wool is important to us, but we need a healthy ecosystem to produce and supply it. There are many things that we can do to improve the quality of our environment.
