RECENT NEWS
RITE Conference 2010 - newsletter
24-06-2010
In an exciting new development, this year's RITE Conference will welcome the Ethical Fashion Forum and its Ethical Fashion Source exhibition.
The two seperate events will run alongside each other on Wednesday 6th October at Central Hall, Westminster, London and will spotlight - in one unique place - the issues of environmental sustainability and ethical fashion.
The Ethical Fashion Source exhibition is expected to attract around 50 exhibitors. The EFF is supported by the Fairtrade Foundation, the World Fair Trade Organisation, and the Textiles Environment Design project at Chelsea College.
To see the latest newsletter click here:
http://www.ritegroup.org/newsletter/RITE%20e-newsletter4.htm
The RITE Conference 6 October 2009 - How sustainable is sustainability?
03-08-2009
The relationship between profitability and principles
It’s obvious that we can’t carry on depleting the earth’s natural resources and contributing to global warming to satisfy our fashion needs, but how realistic is it to expect the cash strapped retailers and consumers of 2009 to pay a premium for green products of equal quality to lower priced conventional textiles?
"We’re at a critical point in time where many feel they can’t afford to be sustainable from a financial perspective but can’t afford to NOT be sustainable for the sake of future generations," said Phil Patterson, RITE Group chairman. "Does the new global financial situation mean sustainability is destined to be a niche lifestyle for those who can afford it, or can it be ingrained in mainstream textiles?"
The 2009 conference will provide delegates with practical information and inspiration for those wishing to develop a sustainable business out of sustainability.
Book your place now as places are limited.
2009 Conference
Speakers @ RITE Group Conference 2009
17-09-2008
BOOK NOW to reserve your place at the third RITE Group conference on Sustainable Textiles and Clothing which once again will feature leading global industry speakers, senior UK politicians, national newspaper journalists along with an exhibition.
Preliminary speakers include: Eco-Model and TV host Summer Rayne Oakes; Dave McCormick, Shell Global Scenarios; Guido Verijke, IKEA; Shreyaskar Chaudhary, Pratibha Syntex. More announcements soon.
Three breakout sessions:
1) Organic, conventional and GM produced fibres and raw materials
2) Green chemistry colouration
3) Sustainability design
Previous RITE Group Conference 2008
06/05/2008
Tesco, one of the UK's leading clothing retailers, and the political journalist and broadcaster Matthew Parris, once a Conservative member of Parliament have both agreed to speak at the forthcoming RITE Group conference in October.
These two high profile speakers will be joined by Pat Nie-Woo, chairman of the newly formed Sustainable Fashion Business Consortium (SFBC) a group of twelve leading Hong Kong textile manufacturers whose vision is to address the massive environmental issues surrounding textile production in China and the Pearl River Delta. Woo is also a director of denim maker Central Textiles.
We have also learned that these speakers will be joined by US-based Sustainable Solutions Inc., which will inform delegates on the latest work being done on the upcycling of waste from textile products.
More speaker announcements to follow.
Westminster venue for RITE conference
01/05/2008
LONDON - This year's RITE Group conference on sustainable textiles and clothing will take place on Tuesday October 7th 2008, at Central Hall Westminster, London. The venue is centrally positioned across the road from Westminster Abbey and Houses of Parliament.
Last year's RITE Group conference in London attracted over 400 delegates and was acknowledged as a landmark event for the global textiles and clothing industry. Speakers at the event included Joan Ruddock MP the UK Government Minister for Climate Change, Biodiversity and Waste who was joined by Lord Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association and speakers from brands such as Marks & Spencer, Levi Strauss, Timberland and Patagonia.
Moving from last year's venue at the Hilton Park Lane to the Central Hall Westminster - at the very heart of the UK's political establishment - reflects the RITE Group's intention to influence political as well as industry leaders to do more to reduce the impact of textile and clothing production on the environment.
The UK Government's Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is currently working on a 'Sustainable Clothing Roadmap', which aims to reduce the environmental and social impacts across the life cycle of clothing. Since the UK imports 90% of its clothing, this initiative will affect manufacturing regions outside the UK and DEFRA is currently submitting a proposal under the UK/India Sustainable Development Dialogue (SDD) to apply for part funding of three UK/India collaborative sustainable clothing projects.
"The change of venue reflects the desire of the RITE Group to support DEFRA's sustainable clothing roadmap and to make sure the issue of sustainable textiles and clothing remains on the political as well as industry radar screens," said RITE Group steering committee member John Mowbray. "The Central Hall Westminster is also a first class, easy to reach, international venue which is more versatile than other venues," he added.
Details of speakers at the event and delegate fees will be announced in due course.
The RITE Group was formed in 2007 and aims to provide advice and fact based information to minimise the negative environmental impact of the production, use and disposal of textiles and apparel. The Group's ultimate goal is to drive forward the sustainable production of textiles and clothing throughout the global supply chain through a number of new initiatives and expert working groups.
Limited places are available so to reserve your place send an email to: info@ritegroup.org
RITE working groups
01/02/2008
The RITE Group is still in the early stages of putting together its working groups which will form the backbone of the work being done by the organisation.
The initial aim of the RITE working groups is to put together a series of standstill documents on best industry practise for all the stages of the textile and clothing supply chain.
The 11 RITE working groups will look at the impact of:
- Agriculture
- Synthetic fibre
- Fabrics and yarns
- Dyeing, printing and finishing
- Design
- Buying standards/retail
- Customer use/laundry
- Recycling/re-use
- Disposal
- Education
- Standards and certification
These groups will come under the direction of the steering group committee.
We are currently in the process of recruiting 'head of working groups.' If you are interested to become a working group head or a member of one of the working groups please do not hesitate to contact us. This is only open to RITE Group supporters [link to member page].
What is exciting about becoming involved in these initiatives is that you will be in a position to affect real change in the textile industry. This is because we are in early discussions with a group of leading textile producers in Hong Kong who are willing to test these initiatives on the ground in Asian textile mills.
The findings of these best practise projects will then be disseminated to the wider textile community in the region and through RITE to the rest of the world.
To register interest in our working groups send an email to info@ritegroup.org
RITE first time around
10/10/2007
The first RITE Group conference on sustainable textiles and clothing drew around 400 delegates from 20 different countries to London where leading politicians, brands, retailers and clothing companies outlined the way forward for the industry. John Mowbray reports.
LONDON - Lords, ladies, gentlemen and a UK government Minister were among the 400 delegates who squeezed into London's Park Lane Hilton Hotel at last month's inaugural RITE Group conference on sustainable textiles and clothing.
Joan Ruddock MP the UK Government Minister for Climate Change, Recycling and Waste was joined by Lord Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association and speakers from brands such as Marks & Spencer, Levi Strauss, Timberland and Patagonia at an event which was hailed as an outstanding success.
A quick look at the delegate list revealed how the issues of sustainability are truly impacting on the whole supply chain. Attendees included fibre manufacturers, spinners, fabric processors, dyestuff makers and even textile machinery builders such as Picanol - the Belgium-based weaving machine supplier. In addition, retailers, pressure groups, non-governmental organisations and a variety of trade associations and media were also packed in to the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Park Lane Hotel where staff had to haul in more chairs to seat delegates at the standing room only event.
Addressing the conference, Joan Ruddock MP said she was encouraged to see the industry felt that there was a need to create RITE. "This shows that there is a commitment within the industry to minimise the negative effects that clothing can have on the environment. A commitment that the [UK] Government is very, very happy to support. And I hope today will help to forge a long and fruitful partnership that will enable us all to realise our goals and improve the sustainability of clothing."
Ruddock noted that the conference came hot on the heels of the recent launch of the UK government's 'Sustainable Clothing Roadmap', which is part of a larger body of work being carried out on sustainable consumption and production in Great Britain and is one of ten product roadmaps currently being developed.
She noted that the environmental impacts of clothing are exacerbated by the huge volumes of apparel consumed in the UK. "In the last 10 years, the amount spent on clothing and textiles, in this country, has grown by 34% and stands at approximately £38 billion, representing around 2 million tonnes per annum," she said, adding that, "I know this is probably good for some of your businesses but, as we know, it can have an impact in other areas."
The Minister noted that the current desire for 'fast fashion' does come at a cost. "Cheap to produce fashion items can be thrown in the bin after being worn just two or three times, adding to the already enormous mountain of waste that this country produces. So we need to look closely at this trend and see if there is any way of reducing its impacts," she said.
Mike Barry, who heads up Marks & Spencer's corporate responsibility programme including the 'Plan A' initiative outlined the obligations of industry, retailers and consumers noting that "80% of clothing in the UK ends up in landfill therefore most becomes waste ... we have a huge responsibility to deal with this."
Barry highlighted a few of the many initiatives the UK retailer is taking in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint including the recent opening of a new eco-store in Bournemouth and its deepening commitment to use more sustainable raw materials. He said M&S has calculated its total carbon dioxide emissions from all operations at 6.3 million tonnes: "that's equivalent to approximately 1% of all UK emissions."
Marks & Spencer Carbon emissions (Kt, thousand tonnes; mt, million tonnes)
M&S operations: 500kt CO2
Supply chain: 4000kt CO2 (mainly food related)
Product use: 1800Kt CO2 (almost exclusively clothing)
Total 6.3mt CO2 (equiv to approx 1% of all UK emissions)
Barry added that "two years ago no-one thought climate change mattered to a shop keeper," and then outlined a number of initiatives that M&S is undertaking to lower its carbon footprint and to reduce the environmental impact of its sourcing requirements.
"We are now taking off unnecessary swing-tags on our garments, using off-cuts from clothes and recycling these into packaging, and making sure all our carrier bags are made from materials that can be easily recycled or composted," he said, and added that M&S is looking at new, cleaner raw materials such as organic linen and said it will ensure all wood-based products are 100% FSC accredited by 2012.
"We as retailers can no longer cherry pick in terms of organic, recycled polyester or Fairtrade. We have to be good at everything. And it's not just about the environment but also about social welfare in the clothing supply chain," emphasised Barry.
It is also important that retailers should bear in mind that consumer expectations evolve, according to Barry, this may be expectations in terms of the environmental impact of cotton, animal welfare, pesticide use, biodiversity or wool production. "The consumer journey (towards sustainability) will not all be one way," he said, "Some of these issues will become more prevalent than others in the short term, but in the medium to longer term the movement is only one way - towards sustainable textiles and clothing."
However, Barry cautioned that, "consumers will always look for value," but in his opinion this equals the sum of price, value, quality and trust, "Trust is where sustainability counts," he said, noting that "some retailers will solve this equation and others will not."
RITE or wrong?
"This is the first 'RITE' (sic) and wrong conference I have been to," said Prof Michael Braungart in an entertaining, engaging and controversial presentation. Braungart, the founder of the chemistry section of Greenpeace and later an advisor to the German government, was referring to the notion of reducing the impact textiles have on the environment. "Less bad is not good," he said, "it's just bad" and called for a new way of thinking from the clothing industry which took product design back to the drawing board so that raw materials used in textiles can be 'upcycled' or turned into something new at the end of a garments useful life.
He also questioned whether the industry should use the term sustainable and in good humour asked the author of this piece if he looked upon the relationship with his wife as being 'sustainable'. While the answer to that question must remain private, he has a good point. Surely the time is now right for the textile and clothing industries to move sustainability to the top of the agenda. Since there is now no way of taking a backward step. "Paving the way to hell with good intentions is not enough," he said, rounding on the audience to good effect.
His company, EPEA, which is based in Hamburg, Germany, developed the world's first compostable T-shirt with Trigema in Germany, and the innovative 'Climatex' Lifecycle upholstery fabric developed jointly with Lenzing, Clariant, Ciba (now Huntsman) and fabric producer Rohner Textil AG. Braungart who is also famous for his book 'Cradle to Cradle', which he co-wrote with the US architect William McDonough, shook some delegates with a stinging attack on Monsanto - the company which supplies genetically modified cotton seed. But overall his comments were largely greeted with enthusiasm and his central point of going back to basics on product design resonated throughout the conference.
Tom Podkolinski from UK surfwear brand Finisterre also homed in on design 'first principles' during his presentation when he said that the company he works for had a "set of principles which set the focus of the design process and led to the evolution of the products it sells and the direction of the company." He noted that without these core beliefs written into the constitution of a company "the environmental agenda can look like a box ticking exercise on a marketing campaign."
Changing opinions
Alberto De Conti of Levi Strauss Europe told delegates that the jeans maker had identified a shift in attitudes to environmental issues from what he said was a "shaggy organic" to "supra sustainable" type of consumer.
He said ethical consumption with zero trade-offs is now "possible and cool". "The trade-offs that existed pre-2006 such as price, taste, convenience and style [for sustainable clothing] are becoming less of an issue as new brands begin to change the paradigm. There is a combination of authentic ingredients, cutting-edge design and very effective marketing. What we are beginning to see is the death of 'alternative lifestyles' with 'ecological living' as the future," said De Conti, director of the global innovation group at Levi Europe's Belgium headquarters.
Levi Strauss have coined the phrase 'futureco' for what it sees as the next wave over greenness. "The impact it will have on the brands is the need for transparency," said De Conti, "we will move beyond consumer facing dimensions such as organic and recycling to bigger issues around production and general business practice."
He noted that for the denim industry this type of approach could help denim by highlighting its long-lasting (and therefore sustainable) nature, it could also mean looking at recycling and spinning old denim as a source of product creation. "Can swapping and dealing in unwanted denim become a source of savings," he asked, "could we re-invent our [product] category?"
The company described its EKO certified jeans as "blue on the outside but green on the inside." These eco range jeans use organic cotton for the pocket bags, a coconut shell waistband button and reinforced stitching instead of metal rivets. They are produced at its company-operated plant in Kiskunhalas, Hungary.
At the end of the presentation, Levi Strauss hinted at the development of its own roadmap to sustainability. "Levi Strauss Europe is intrigued by the use of technology to offer constructive and innovative environmental solutions, as this applies to textiles and clothing," Eric Drosin, External Communications Manager for Levi Strauss Europe told Ecotextile News. "Another area of interest for Levi Strauss Europe is using 'no-process' instead of 'process' - by this we mean looking to solutions which are entirely natural and represent a more literal step toward sustainable clothing and purity of textiles," he added.
Cotton and organics
Organic cotton production featured at the RITE Group event even though it represents less than 1% of the world's cotton crop. Lord Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association said that "organic is not a purist approach but a practical approach to agriculture," and claimed that it was actually cheaper to produce than conventional cotton because it takes all its nutrients from the soil and the atmosphere, "organic yields are similar to conventional cotton ... and what is now described as a niche or fringe product is a revolution waiting to happen," he claimed, adding that the demand for organics will be driven by both climate change and customer expectation.
Melchett spoke fluently and passionately about the issues surrounding conventional cotton and even surprised some delegates (based on recent emails to Ecotextile News) who were not aware that Wal-Mart is the largest buyer of organic cotton. Melchett gave credence to Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott's approach to organics during his talk and explained how the US retail giant got into organic cotton in the first place. "In 2004 Wal-Mart ordered a yoga outfit made of organic cotton for Sam's Club. The 190,000 units sold out in ten weeks, which saved the equivalent of two jumbo jets full of pesticide from applied to the land."
However, he noted that due to crop rotation there would be less cotton grown if the world was to go organic. With tighter supplies, this would push up the prices of cotton fibre and clothing, and in doing so increase the economic and social security of the growers in developing regions.
Melchett drew comparisons between the early organic food and cotton industries in the UK arguing that their early-stage development is similar. "UK sales of organic cotton clothing should reach £100 million in 2007," he said, "and we should see steady rates of growth similar to the organic food market." The organic food sector in the UK is now worth £1.9 billion.
Transparency
US brand Timberland brought some clarity to proceedings by outlining its view of transparency through the supply chain. Peter Girard, a senior analyst at Timberland talked about the US brands 'Green Index' and noted that even in instances where its product may not be sustainable, the consumer can easily find out via the "green index" used on its goods.
"We wanted to provide a comparative measure of environmental performance, both for consumers to understand and compare the product, and also for designers who are making those comparisons and choices every day," said Girard.
This index measures the chemical consumption involved in production of each indexed item, including information about climate impact, chemicals used and resource consumption, but not transportation. He noted that "most of what we are sourcing is from a very small area in China," and said that logistics relative to the impacts of raw materials and chemicals in its footwear and clothing is actually quite small.
Carbon credits
Invista, the US textile fibre giant and maker of Lycra gave its first ever presentation on eco-textiles and sustainability anywhere in the world and announced the 'retirement' of 800 tonnes of 2006 Verified Emission Reduction carbon credits in recognition of the aims and objectives of the RITE group. "These verified credits represent real, measurable and surplus reductions in [carbon] emissions from the Invista Maitland site and have a real market value to buyers seeking to offset emissions in a wide range of activities or regions around the world," said Bob Kirkwood, Invista's Vice President of Technology.
A lively Q&A session rounded off the day and delegates seemed very happy with the event. "I enjoyed the conference and was how amazed at the wonderfully eclectic mix of speakers you managed to assemble. There was something for everyone, in every area of the textile trade and I went away entertained, challenged and enthused. A real triumph. Congratulations," said Kevin Smithbone, the Technical Manager of UK-based quilt and pillow makers Fogarty Ltd.
© Published by Mowbray Communications Ltd, 2008. All rights reserved. ISSN: 1752-7422.