BRUSSELS – Almost 900 signatories representing hundreds of thousands of farmers in natural fibres supply chains have signed a letter to the EU Council voicing concerns that its apparel ‘scoring’ method for the Green Claims Directive has been hijacked by fast fashion.
The letter points out that only major brands such as H&M, Nike, Inditex and VF Corp can now afford to participate and vote in the Product Environmental Footprint tool within the Green Claims Directive process.
San Francisco-based Cascale (formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition) is technical secretariat for the PEFCR for Apparel and Footwear. Apparel Insider understands the secretariat recently increased the cost of participation and voting for the PEFCR – and it now runs into six figures.
The technical secretariat has 26 members but only 14 of these have voting rights. More than half of these are fashion brands, with the only representation from natural fibres being from Cotton Incorporated and the Alliance for European Flax Linen and Hemp.
The letter argues that none of the 14 voting members are farmers, highlighting that farmers’ voices aren’t heard up, “against the well-funded and powerful fast fashion industry.”
The letter points out that PEF continues to penalise and misrepresent natural fibres vis-à-vis their synthetic and man-made counterparts – to the detriment of farmers and the environment.
While this issue has been rumbling away for years, it has now come to head because recent communications suggest the European Council is endorsing PEF or PEFCR, to underpin the Green Claims Directive. This will be agreed on 17 June 2024.
The sizeable increase in voting and participation in the process has also blindsided farmers groups.
The letter states: “The PEF methodology unfairly favours synthetic, fossil fuel-derived materials over natural fibres, misrepresenting natural fibres as harmful to the environment and therefore posing a significant risk of injustice to farmers whose lives depend on the production of these natural fibres.
“We farmers are custodians of our land, and this comes with enormous responsibility. Our farms are often small, family-based, multi-generational operations, and we are yet to meet a farmer who doesn’t want to hand their farm on in a better state than they found it; this is our definition of sustainability, our legacy, our heritage.
“Farmers are already presented with significant challenges as a result of climate change, including constantly recurring crises and uncertainties. If the EU introduces policy that favours cheap, synthetic fibres used by the fast fashion industry, the struggle for farmers will become even more severe and they may have no option but to give up on farming practices and providing food and fibre to humanity.
“Our farming practices involve supporting landscapes and communities, contributing to soil health and protecting biodiversity. These proven positive effects that result from responsible farming practices are all overlooked by the current PEF methodology.
“While we fully support meaningful sustainability labelling of clothing products based on accurate and complete methodologies, it is clear that the PEF methodology is not adequate to assess the environmental performance of agricultural products and will therefore enable greenwashing by fast fashion brands.
“It is also important to highlight that the technical secretariat for the PEFCR for Apparel and Footwear has set a prohibitively high cost to participate in the voting process, meaning that only large brands with ample funding can afford to be a voting member.
“None of the 26 members are farmers. In fact, decisions are voted on and agreed by a two-thirds majority – there are 14 total voting members, 8 of which have a synthetic business model to protect.”
“If the European Council agree on the General Approach to include the PEF methodology on 17 June 2024, the Green Claims Directive will accelerate the growth of fast fashion and put farmers’ livelihoods at risk.”
