The harsh reality of fast fashion

Fast fashion is 'inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends'. Expanding on this, high-street retailers sample ideas from the catwalk but more so from celebrity culture and turns cheaply resourced garments into trendy clothing, selling them in-store and online at break neck speed (A Stanton,2020). From having 2 seasons a year (spring/summer and autumn/winter) there are now around 52 seasons a year. That is a new collection every week as retailers are consistently keeping up with the turnover of trends seen on famous faces with a large mass of social media presence.

After watching 'Why is fast fashion so cheap?', on Sustainably Vegan's Youtube channel, I found myself more and more interested in the topic of fast fashion. In the video, she recommends a documentary called 'The True Cost' which discusses several issues and aspects of the industry.

The True Cost documentary is directed by Andrew Morgan and produced by Michael Ross

who travel the globe filming the production of our clothes. Most people are aware of sweat shops and where our clothes come from but not to the full extent as it's also a subject that most of us brush over.

The labels in clothes will mostly read 'made in' India, China, Indonesia but rarely from our own country. Only 2% of clothes sold in the US are actually made there (Stephanie Vatz, 2013) and as for the UK, over 90% of fashion and textiles are made elsewhere of Britain (UKFT, 2018). The most we would ever hear about the production of our clothes is through media coverage when a factory has collapsed, or a protest has begun. One in particular: The Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh, used for the production of garments by Primark, Benetton, Bon Marche and Mango to name a few, collapsed in 2013 due to the building being unstable therefore, unsafe to work in. 1,134 people lost their lives and 2,500 wounded, despite the workers reporting the issues with the building to their manager; Sohal Rana, only to be forced to continue to work with no action taken (The true cost, 2015). This is unfortunately only one disaster out of many, yet it brought to light the truth of the working conditions for those suffering in garment production.

These harsh work environments are home to over 85% female garment workers. They are even more subject to violence, sexual harassment and exploitation with little to no reward, earning up to £8.00 a month. Many ask, "Why don't they work somewhere else?", "Can they ask for safer work conditions?". The answer is no, any choice is taken away from them.

A Garment employee, Shima Akhter, in Bangladesh shares details on asking for safer conditions explaining,"I formed a work union and presented the management with a list of demands. They refused, they locked us in a room and we were beaten with chairs and sticks by them and 40 other staff members" (The true cost, 2015).

Any form of basic essential human rights, these workers do not have and it's an ongoing battle to this day. Garment workers, their children and families are all paying the price for cheap clothing.

The fashion industry is also a major factor in the rapid decline of our natural world. There have been many figures thrown around stating that fashion is the 2nd most polluting industry to the environment however, this statement is not true. Because there are so many factors to take into account such as, water pollution, micro-plastics, landfill, CO2 emission etc, it is difficult to identify what the leading cause is. Based upon statistics of 2019, the fashion production makes up for 10% of carbon emissions and up to 85% of all textiles are dumped in landfill every year. On top of that, washing our clothes releases 500,000 tons of microfibers into the ocean which includes polyester (plastic). Cotton also contributes to 24% of the worlds insecticides. It is extremely water intensive and used in two-thirds of all clothing (Yael Aflalo, 2016). Cotton farming is the most widespread profitable nonfood crop in the world, and it's production employs almost 7% of the labor force in developing countries being farmed all over the world with China, India and the US having the largest production of all. When looking at statistics in the cotton industry, it's almost unbelievable to think that 20,000 litres of water is needed to produce one kilogram of cotton which is the equivalent to a single t-shirt or pair of jeans (WWF).

Not only does the environment suffer, the workers do too. The constant exposure to chemicals and pesticides are so fatal and cause many illnesses to the employees and surrounding neighbourhoods. Many develop respiratory sensitisation's, contact dermatitis, infections and diseases from water consumed. In 1 village alone, 60 children in India needed immediate treatment, however the families could not afford healthcare.

Sacred places like the Noyyal River that had been flowing clean water for thousands of years is now one of the highest polluted rivers due to the chemical dyeing. These are severe consequences for a materialistic value.

I struggle to say that, as our clothes do not really have a significant value to us. With careless production, cheap materials and lowering of prices for competition in order to get profit, it's no wonder we have developed a 'throwaway system'. In high-street shops like Primark and H&M, consumers are used to poor quality = low cost, and with that a low amount of care and an easily replaced attitude is developed.

Companies advertise and support this need to consume being the way to solve your life problems yet only grant you a short-term high. They make it easy for us to evolve the idea of things we want are expectedly cheaper, yet things we need cost more. Materialism is a mindset that needs to change. It is the bases of greed in which others suffer. People have a disconnect between the product and the products journey, but knowing that everything we wear has been touched by human hands and is made from their blood, sweat and tears, hopefully helps us join the connection.

Now, with all the information and figures it can be overwhelming and difficult to get a clear mind about it. I encourage you to watch The true Cost Documentary and to research in your own time. There's many resources and Youtube channels covering this subject (Sustainably Vegan, Sedona Christina) with useful advice on how to change or to be more mindful of products you are consuming. Buying with intention and valuing your items goes a long way, even making a switch to a sustainable and eco-friendly lifestyle. In my next post, I will be covering subjects to do with landfill and how to shop more sustainably so make sure to look out for that.