A recent study showed that consumers, willingly or not, made more sustainable choices after being shown the carbon footprint of each product. This seems to validate the hypothesis that carbon labels can indeed nudge consumers towards a more climate-friendly purchase. But could carbon labels also nudge people towards more climate-friendly fashion choices?
Carbon labels in fashion
When we look at the carbon labeling efforts being taken in the fashion industry, one brand always pops up: Allbirds
The sustainable shoe brand has launched its “Tread Lighter” program and published its carbon footprint in April 2020. Carbon labels appear on all of their products, online and at retail, so customers know each pair of shoe’s impact. Materials, manufacturing, transport, use and disposal are all taken into account in this life cycle assessment.
Now, of course, fashion is far more than just footwear. This is why new projects like Vert Science are looking to help brands decarbonize their entire production chain, far beyond footwear, by auditing factories, farms and suppliers to provide crystal clear life cycle assessments (LCAs).
Could carbon labels end greenwashing in the fashion industry?
With every new wave of sustainability initiative in fashion, there’s always the other side of the coin: greenwashing (conveying a false impression or providing misleading information about how a company's products are more environmentally sound). To fight greenwashing, transparency is key. And even though transparency is at the core of carbon labels, they surely can be used for greenwashing purposes. For instance, a fast fashion brand could create “carbon neutral” clothes simply by purchasing offsets to balance out very wasteful production. This does not reduce their footprint; it only makes them pay to continue their “business as usual” operations while purchasing offsets whose legitimacy is often questionable.
Can carbon labels change the way we buy clothes?
Climate-consciousness surely is at an all time high, and this should give carbon labels the momentum they need to become essentials in the fashion industry. While they remain misunderstood and somewhat obscure for most right now, and consumers still vastly underestimate the impact of fashion, carbon labels are poised to make a real impact in the fashion industry. They have proved their ability to nudge people in the right direction for the food labels already. (https://www.chatelaine.com/living/what-are-carbon-labels/)
Carbon labels will play an important role in shedding light on the still underestimated impact of fashion and will make their way to the fashion industry – bringing a positive impact on how people shop.
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