France has brought in a new labelling to help customers pick clothes based on their environmental impact.
On Wednesday, the French government launched a new scheme designed to help shoppers learn about the environmental impact of the clothes they are purchasing.
Participating clothing stores and brands can now include a small label called an ‘écoscore textile’, similar to France’s Nutri-Score label, which denotes the healthiness of food from A to E, on new pieces of clothing.
READ MORE: Nutri-score: How do France’s ‘traffic light’ food labels work?
The label will be optional. Usually, it will be included directly on the price tag, but some clothing brands or stores might opt to simply display a QR code or explanation on their website that shares the environmental score.
An example of the clothing label. Credit: French government
The score on the piece of clothing gets higher based on its environmental impact. To come up with a score, the following factors are assessed;
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The consumption of water and other natural resources in the manufacturing of the garment, as well as the use of chemicals in the production process
The modes of transportation used to bring the garment to customers
Whether (and how much) the garment releases microfibres, particularly when washing
The possibility of eventually recycling or repairing the garment
The ‘durability’ of the garment – meaning both the possibility of repairing it, as well as how much it can physically withstand wear and tear associated with regular use
As such, the score will differ based on the type of clothing.
For example, an environmental cost of 1,000 points might represent a high impact for a pair of socks or a baby’s onesie, but it would represent a lower impact for jeans or a coat, which contain much more material.
There is no set maximum, nor is there an official ‘good’ range.
The idea is that people will start to build their own framework for how to assess the environmental costs of different items of clothing.
For instance, a customer might compare several jumpers of the same price and use the eco-score to pick the one with the lower environmental impact.
READ MORE: Bio, artisan and red label: What do French food and drink labels really mean?
It follows other French schemes to develop scores that help influence more environmentally conscious (or healthy) consumer behaviour, from the Nutri-Score referenced above to the DPE, an energy rating that ranks properties from A to G based on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Why add the ‘eco-score’ label?
According to France’s environment ministry, the textile industry generates 10 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases, representing a greater impact than international flights and maritime traffic combined. It was also responsible for 20 percent of global drinking water pollution.
Allowing brands to add an eco-score to garments is one part of France’s 2021 Climate and Resilience Act, which also included banning short-haul domestic flights when a train alternative was available.
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Initially, the eco-score was set to be mandatory from 2024, but it was delayed due to the reluctance of stakeholders in the textile industry. As a result, it is now available on a voluntary basis.
France’s environment minister, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, told the French press in September that the EU intends to develop mandatory environmental labelling for clothing.
France’s eco-score will help to provide a foundation for the future harmonised European framework for scoring the environmental impact of garments.
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