The production chain is key to achieving sustainability

In order to assess the extent of the environmental impact an item of clothing has, the entire lifecycle perspective must be taken into account.

– Yes, it is not enough to just look at what material the garment is made of. All resources used in the manufacturing must be included. A factory may use organic cotton, but at the same time dye the fabric with toxic dyes and produce its electricity and heat from fossil fuels such as coal, says Sandra Roos, researcher at RISE and co-author of the study's two reports, Part 1 and 2 of The Fiber Bible from Mistra Future Fashion.

An important conclusion in the reports is that differences in the way the producers work in the production of fibres all the way to finished garments often have a greater environmental impact than the fibres in the garment.

The report authors reject simplified comparisons between clothing made from fibres classified as being either “green” or conventional, “good” or “bad”. Instead, the focus should be on whether the producers have a functioning environmental system and how the textile fibres are used throughout the entire life cycle. For clothing, the life cycle includes everything from the cultivation of for example cotton or flax and the spinning of yarn to weaving, dyeing and sewing.

In the study, the researchers have also investigated whether new fibres used in clothing and marketed as being sustainable really are better for the environment. One conclusion is that there is rarely enough data to classify the fibres as actually being sustainable and that such classification can therefore be misleading.

– There is a risk that investments in new fibre technology will not be made where the environmental benefits are greatest. The lack of data can also lead to erroneous or uninformed decisions regarding the choice of new fibres. This applies to both its environmental performance and the technical properties, says Gustav Sandin, researcher at RISE and co-author of part 2 of The Fiber Bible.

According to the researchers, there is no doubt that new alternatives to conventional cotton are needed, which is the most used natural fibre in clothing. The reason is that the cultivation often involves irrigation and the use of pesticides.

In practice, some cotton has long been replaced by forest and synthetic fibres for economic reasons. The results show, however, that none of the alternative fibres available today have all the characteristics offered by cotton.

– Instead, we need to look at what type of fibre is suitable for what kind of products, says Sandra Roos.