The apparel industry is one of the most booming options these days. Since the majority of people out there are into fashion, the chances for it to diminish are extremely low. However, do you know that this industry is counted amongst the ones that produce most waste on the planet? According to a recent study, people in the United States are likely to toss out approximately 80 pounds of clothing every year. As a result, the amount of garment waste that tends to pile up in landfills becomes 26 billion pounds.
The wastage here does not only come from the final products but also from the excess raw materials and other production tools that are employed when making apparels. For instance, the fashion industry holds one of the top positions when it comes to water and electricity wastage. In fact, a study conducted by UNICEF states that around 20% of the overall water wastage in the world is contributed by the garment industry.
Without any doubts, this is a serious matter that requires sudden and efficient actions. If you are thinking about the steps that you can take to clean up this fashion industry, some of the effectual options are given below.
Banishing Resource-Intensive Garments
One of the most common fabrics that you can spot in the wardrobe of almost every person is cotton. Do you know that it requires around 713 gallons of water to produce one cotton shirt? Note that this is equal to the amount of water that an average person can drink in 2.5 years. Just imagine the amount of water consumed by a cotton fabric wholesale company. Besides, many studies conducted in the field claim that the garment industry consumes around 98 million tons of oil and 26.4 trillion gallons of water annually.
Worse, the oceans have become a ground to dump millions of textile waste. Thankfully, almost every textile company is currently adopting better alternatives these days to tackle this problem. One of the perfect examples of such sustainable alternatives is Pinatex, which is a leather garment that is sourced from pineapple leaves.
Supporting Regenerative Farming
Most top-notch garment companies out there are taking steps to cut the environmental impact caused by the textile manufacturing up to 40% within the next few years; all credit goes to regenerative farming. It is to be noted that clothing such as cotton requires crop cultivation, which leads to soil degradation and adverse loss of biodiversity. Regenerative farming includes natural practices like composting that helps to regain the health of the soil as well as avoid adverse impacts on the environment.