Why Fashion Needs to Prioritize Sustainable Forest Sourcing
Fashion and forests are intrinsically linked.
Today, 6.4 percent of textiles are produced with wood-based feedstock, according to sustainability nonprofit Textile Exchange. With deforestation responsible for up to 10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, pivoting to “forest-positive” sourcing for man-made cellulosic fibers (MMCF) such as viscose, lyocell, modal and acetate, has never been more critical.
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Deforestation isn’t just about mowing down trees, said Julia Kozlik, textile program lead at the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), which published on Wednesday a white paper detailing the role clothing purveyors can play in preserving the well-being of forest ecosystems. Forests, she told Sourcing Journal, are “quite complex.” Trees aside, they support a sprawling web of biodiversity. More than 80 percent of all terrestrial species of animals, plants and insects, for instance, call forests home.
There are also the frequently overlooked social risks that forest loss and mismanagement pose, Kozlik said. The United Nations estimates that one-quarter of the world’s population, or 1.6 billion people, depend on forests for their subsistence needs, livelihoods and incomes. The forestry sector itself employs roughly 33 million people, accounting for 1 percent of global employment. Potential risks tied to MMCF sourcing can therefore also include unsafe working conditions, exploitative wages and limits on the freedom to associate.
Kozlik said that much of this is still new to many brands that might be just beginning to implement certain policies around MMCF sourcing. They might not be aware of what tools they can use to trace and verify materials once they leave the forest. Certainly, awareness about the connection between clothing and trees is still quite low among consumers, she said.
“They might not even know that viscose comes from trees,” Kozlik said. “But also there’s little visibility—we don’t really have enough verified statements, claims or anything about the origins of those fibers that consumers can see from their garments.”
PEFC’s report aims to fill some of the upstream gaps that are preventing that information from filtering downward.
The first step: Understanding the sourcing landscape, including the location of the forests and their specific environmental and social contexts. In Europe, for instance, dissolving wood pulp primarily stems from semi-natural forests, while in North America, naturally regenerated forests reign. In China, some 20 percents of forests are plantations, while 61 percent are naturally regenerating forests.
Next is developing a sourcing policy that includes sustainable forest management standards.
PEFC, as a certification nonprofit, naturally favors third-party chains of custody. Transparency and traceability, Kozlik said, are essential and can only be achieved through mapping what is quite a “lengthy and faraway” supply chain.
And while sustainable forest management may be formally part of Sustainable Development Goal 15—life on land—the right strategy can touch nearly all of the United Nations Development Programme’s targets. Supporting this “forest-positive” future can protect endangered species, reduce inequalities, promote climate action and drive responsible consumption and production.
Other efforts to mitigate forest loss, such as Textile Exchange and the Leather Working Group’s call to action for deforestation-free leather, are complementary, Kozlik said. Most of them also revolve around understanding the socioeconomic reasons behind deforestation and leveraging market incentives to “make sure forests remain forests,” she added.
The market share of MMCFs verified by PEFC and the Forest Stewardship Council has been increasing from 55 percent to 60 percent in 2020 to 60 percent to 65 percent in 2021. But that leaves another 35 percent of the fibers with unknown sources, Kozlik said. So far, there isn’t a single man-made cellulosic garment that can verifiably claim to be completely forest friendly.
That’s not to say it isn’t possible.
“It’s totally feasible,” she said. “It’s just [having] the understanding and knowledge of how [to do it] and [having] better priorities. Brands need to put it higher on top of their agenda.”
