Greenpeace activists “attacked” The North Face store in Milan's Galleria San Carlo on Feb. 18, to protest against the brand's use of hazardous chemicals in clothing and accessories. The activists launched red confetti, symbolizing poly-fluorinated compounds (PFCs), inside the store and in front of it. A recent report compiled by Greenpeace after analyzing 40 products showed that a TNF sleeping bag contained high concentrations of PFOA, a long-chain PFC allegedly linked to serious diseases including cancer.
Meanwhile, a group of 20 companies from the Prato textile district, in Tuscany, have announced their commitment to Detox, the Greenpeace standard for non-toxic fashion production. The collective announcement was made in a press conference hosted by Greenpeace in Milan on Feb. 11.
Confindustria Toscana Nord, which represents the largest textile district in Europe, will oversee the adoption of the Detox hazardous chemical elimination standards in the region. According to Greenpeace, this standard was never before implemented collectively at the supply chain level. The agreement will affect more than 13,000 tons of yarn and raw materials and more than 13 million meters of fabric per year. Prato's decision is expected to encourage more manufacturers to Detox, said Greenpeace.
The Detox campaign asks fashion brands to commit to eliminate the use of all hazardous chemicals by 2020. The list of companies choosing to Detox their fashion by 2020 already includes 35 international fashion and textile brands and retailers, which represent more than 15 percent of global textile production in terms of sales. Among these companies and brands are Inditex, Adidas, H&M, Miroglio, Valentino, and Burberry.
To date, the Prato-based companies have already removed a number of hazardous chemical groups required by the Detox campaign. These include brominated and chlorinated flame retardants, organotins compounds, and amines associated with azo dyes that can have negative effects on the human reproductive system and cause cancer. These companies have also defined shorter timelines to remove poly- and perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), a chemical group largely used in outdoor gear, which they will stop using by the summer of 2016.
