I read with interest the article “Solving fashion’s waste problem” by Rachel Cernansky (Style, Life & Arts, FT Weekend, May 31), on efforts to make the fast fashion industry take greater accountability for the glut of garments they push out into the world.
If the same retailers are put in charge of sorting, reusing and then recycling waste clothes, then the burden of extended producer responsibility (EPR) should give them every incentive to make garments recyclable by design and more durable so they can be resold. So even though “EPR screams end of life”, as the expert in plastic waste quoted in the article says, it should still move the industry towards a more circular model from the beginning of the life of an item of clothes — assuming it is done well, of course.
I agree that much of the success will hinge on who will make up the Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO), the body assigned to oversee an EPR programme. Here in Spain it will be a consortium of top retailers, a model that arguably is not representative of all stakeholders. Moreover, the many non-profits and social enterprises that have already been collecting and managing used clothing for years must not be left behind in this transition.
As a final comment, I would say that none of these laudable initiatives will make much difference if consumers aren’t encouraged to think twice before buying another piece of fast fashion or throwing their clothes in the rubbish bin.
Education is everything, and buying sturdy items of clothing and mending them when they get damaged can also have a real impact on the waste clothing problem, as can making sure unwanted garments get disposed of in the right way.
Anna Sáez de Tejada Cuenca
Assistant Professor, IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Barcelona, Spain
