Canopy: third of viscose supply not from ancient forest

26 Dec '18

3 min read

Courtesy: Canopy

Almost a third of global viscose supply is now low risk of coming from ancient and endangered forests, according to the Hot Button Report by environmental not-for-profit Canopy. Three major producers - Lenzing, Birla Cellulose and filament yarn producer ENKA - representing 28 per cent of global viscose supply, have attained ‘light green shirt’ rankings.

Over 160 CanopyStyle partner brands, designers and retailers and many others in the clothing sector rely on this yearly assessment of the performance of viscose and rayon producers to make responsible sourcing decisions, inform their engagement of suppliers, and reach their sustainability goals.

“Since 2018 and onwards, all products containing man-made cellulosic fibres that are delivered to C&A stores in Europe and China are sourced from producers that have completed the CanopyStyle verification audit with low risk findings,” stated Jeff Hogue, chief sustainability officer C&A.“This verification gives us confidence that our supply chain partners have the right practices in place to prevent wood pulp from ancient or endangered forests from entering our products.”

Yibin Grace, the world’s fifth largest by volume, is highlighted for proactively engaging with Canopy this year, and for quickly finalising its policy and embarking on the CanopyStyle audit, according to the report.

Sanyou has earned fourth place in the Hot Button rankings, earning a ‘yellow/green shirt’ indicating continuous progress. Sateri, a subsidiary of Royal Golden Eagle (RGE), has earned the 10 ‘buttons’ needed to technically receive a yellow shirt, but was awarded a ‘yellow/red shirt’ due to confirmed high risk and sources of controversial fibre.

Three producers have ‘red shirt’s, which indicate they do not meet minimum requirement for compliance. Three Chinese producers - Sateri, Sanyou and Fulida –and German producer ENKA completed and published their CanopyStyle audits in 2018.

“With brands and retailers having clear purchasing guidelines to source only from Hot Button green-shirt producers from 2020 onwards, it is no longer an option for producers to ignore their forest impacts,” says Nicole Rycroft, Canopy founder and executive director. “It is a clear sign that sustainable sourcing is imperative and that next generation solutions for the textile industry are on its way.”

The 2018 Hot Button edition encompasses a much deeper level of information and data to help brands avoid sourcing from the world’s ancient and endangered forests.

The report features for the first time a comprehensive list of 31 producers. It also introduces a white shirt category for newly engaged producers that are yet to be fully assessed, as well as a market flag to highlight areas where caution and attention is required by the marketplace.

The CanopyStyle initiative was launched in 2013. Today, viscose producers representing close to 75 per cent of the entire global capacity of viscose production have policies in place and 54 per cent of supply has been audited through the CanopyStyle initiative. In addition, the recently released ForestMapper, supported by more than 100 companies, is used in the audit process, to identify risk level of sourcing from ancient and endangered forests. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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