London Fashion Week Goes Fur-Free

ANIMALS UNITED: Fur will no longer be used on the London Fashion Week catwalks, as of this month.

The British Fashion Council made an announcement Friday morning confirming that, after conducting a survey with all on-schedule designers, no designer will be using fur in their collections.

The news comes on the heels of Burberry’s announcement to ban fur from its collections, with the exception of shearling, and follows the example set by brands including Gucci, Versace, Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors, among others.

In the last year, anti-fur activists have been making their presence felt outside BFC venues, demanding that the organization imposes a total fur ban on catwalk and presentation designers.

Until now, the BFC has said that while it advises designers to operate in sustainable ways, it cannot interfere with their creative process.

“The BFC supports the creativity of designers and keeps an open dialogue with the industry, from designers to media, retailers, business leaders, government and global brands while encouraging designers to make ethical choices when it comes to their selection of materials and supply chain,” the organization said, following the announcement.

The survey conducted on fur debate was part of the BFC’s Positive Fashion initiative, which aims to educate designers to make ethical choices and reduce waste in their supply chain.

Other priorities spearheaded as part of Positive Fashion include the introduction of a code conduct for models during the shows, the provision of visas for talented fashion design students and a two-year partnership with David Beckham to build partnerships and networks in the U.S. and Asia.

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