Fast fashion deal targets the end of waste

A deal on improving sustainability in fashion with retailers and brands is the first step towards reducing massive waste generated by the sector.

Emma Cutri is co-founder of sustainable Melbourne designer label Sister. Picture: Aaron Francis/The Australian

The federal government has reached a historic agreement on improving sustainability in fashion with industry groups, retailers and brands, the first step towards reducing the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of waste generated by the sector.

An industry working group will be established in an effort by the commonwealth, the private sector, charities and fashion bodies to reduce the 800,000 tonnes of textile waste sent to landfills each year.

Signatories to a communique thrashed out at a roundtable in Canberra this week include online retailer The Iconic, Kmart, David Jones & Country Road, the Australian Retailers Association and the Australian Fashion Council.

A national summit on sustainable fashion will be held later this year to establish a set of product stewardship goals, following federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley’s announcement on Wednesday of $1 million funding to find solutions to the waste problem.

This has been a growing issue across the industry given the rapid take-up of fast fashion – cheap but trendy clothes that are worn a few times and then discarded.

The summit will focus on collaboration between industry and government and Ms Ley has ruled out toughening regulations.

At the roundtable, Ms Ley said she was interested in recycled polyester but preferred natural ­fibres.

“The wool industry and the cotton industry are very close to my heart,” she said. “And you can recycle both of those types of materials and disaggregate the fibers and almost start again.” Co-founder of Sister Studios, Emma Cutri, 31, said the government’s product stewardship funding was “brilliant”.

Her Melbourne label uses sustainable fabrics including linen, cotton and recycled material.

“With all these fast fashion brands, it’s nice for people to stop and think about the price point of their garments and why perhaps it is that price,” she said.

Ideas to reduce fast fashion waste included giving items of clothing QR codes to assist brands to track clothing from production to shop to wardrobe to bin.

Circular Centre director Alison Jose said the data collected through QR codes could help fashion businesses access the Emission Reduction Fund and potentially earn income through improved sustainability.

“The idea is for data is to add a QR code, back that into blockchain, but also a lifecycle assessment,” she said.

“I think it’s important to do that piece because then you’re also looking at how you can appropriate that to the Emission Reduction Fund and then that has the potential to gain some income.”