The commitment came just nine days after Greenpeace launched its report “Toxic Threads: The Big Fashion Stitch-Up” in Beijing on November 20. According to Greenpeace - Zara becomes the eighth brand to commit to eliminate releases of all hazardous chemicals throughout its supply chains and products since Greenpeace launched its Detox campaign in 2011.

An Inditex spokeserson told fibre2fashion, “Inditex has always been committed with Zero Discharge aim and has been working for years towards this goal”.

She adds, “Inditex' Zero Discharge Commitment places the company at the leading position of the environmental commitment in our sector due to its transparency, technical accuracy, strict and pragmatic agenda and the promotion of a research programme carried out in cooperation with the most appropriate scientific and technological teams, which, at the shortest possible deadline, will assess the safest alternatives to reach cleaner industrial processes at the textile industry”.

Welcoming the decision, Martin Hojsik, Detox Campaign Coordinator at Greenpeace International said, “Greenpeace welcomes Zara’s commitment to toxic-free fashion. If the world’s biggest fashion retailer can do it, there’s no excuse for other brands not to clean up their supply chains and make fashion without pollution”.

He added, “People around the world have spoken out against toxic fashion and it’s now time for other brands such as Esprit, Gap and Victoria’s Secret to listen to their customers and urgently Detox.”

As part of the breakthrough commitment, Inditex will make 20 suppliers to disclose pollution data as early as March 2013, while at the same time, giving those living near these facilities access to information about discharges to their local environment.  

Zara is reinforcing the ban on APEOs, and pledges to set further short-term elimination timelines for other priority hazardous chemicals, including PFCs.

Greenpeace’s Detox campaign demands fashion brands commit to zero discharge of all hazardous chemicals by 2020 and require their suppliers to disclose all releases of toxic chemicals from their facilities to communities at the site of the water pollution.

Click here to view action plan of Inditex to achieve zero discharge.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India