Ethics in the Fashion Industry
How can ethics in fashion industry reduce animal cruelty and environmental pollution in the production process?
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INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
The fashion industry is known to exploit animals to horrific extents as most of the companies use animal fur for their products. Awareness on the issue has been raised by several activist groups, including PETA, who raised awareness to the inhumane conditions that fashion companies cause. Indeed, most people acquire products that are a result of animal cruelty without knowing the degree of torture that animals perceive in the process. Fashion industries make use of fur and leather, which are valuable commodities, and are raised in fur farms only to be killed afterwards. the production process also pollutes the environment and is toxic to the workers who come in contact with it daily.
The animals used in fashion industries are confined in areas causing mental and physical distress, and when they are ready for skinning, they are either killed through neck-breaking or electrocution to reduce fur damage. The animals are also not given anesthetics as the companies try to save on costs. The cosmetic sector in the fashion industry also legally uses animals to test their products, including rabbits, birds, monkeys, and mice are victims of these inhumane tests. The industries also pollute the environment, especially through the leather-tanning factories that are harmful to the environment and can cause health problems like cancer and leukemia. Mass production of leather and fur has established a cruel system traps, farms, and skinned animals, reflecting on the unethical practices taking part in the fashion industry. The fashion industry needs to reduce its use of inhumane conditions in their leather, cosmetic, and fur production, as well as environment pollution, through the use of sustainable production techniques and approaches that cause less pain and suffering to animals.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to identify the cruelty done to animals during the production of fur and leather and suggest a better approach that can be used in the production of leather and fur to reduce the extent of cruelty to animals.
SCOPE
This report involves information from several fur farmers and individuals who are involved in the manufacture of fur and leather in those industries. These individuals are directly involved in animal cruelty and can be an effective group for the report, but they cannot illustrate the true impact of animal cruelty in fashion companies producing fur and leather. A wider group, however, is recommended for future research.
Methodology
The report uses information from both primary and secondary sources. Questionnaire data is used as a primary source of information, and is used alongside other secondary sources like books, international journals, research articles, news reports, and statistical reports. The information is also up to date and ranges between the years 2010-2019.
CAUSES
- Leather and Fur
Leather and fur are among the essential and valuable commodities used in the fashion industry, and animals are affected the most as they are bred and skinned in the process. Animals are raised for a period and the killed each day and their products used in making shoes and clothes. This unethical practice has raised more concerns as animals are killed in masses just for people to show off their popularity and fashion, thanks to responsible fashion companies. Among the animals killed for fur and leather include millions of pigs, cows, sheep, goat, kangaroos, ostriches, as well as cats and dogs.
In China, millions of cats and dogs are hanged, bludgeoned, skinned alive, or even bled to death for their fur. Animals are also trapped in the wild for days and can suffer from shock, dehydration, blood loss, or predator attacks. In Canada, seal slaughter is done to thousands of baby harp seals, which are shot or bludgeoned repeatedly with clubs with metal hook tips. Canada also involves the shooting and trapping of hundreds of black bears, whose skin are used to make ceremonial hats worn the Five Guard’s Regiments of Queen Elizabeth II. Animals also walk long distances as they are transported to factories, and are denied rest, water, and food. The animals are injured or thrashed to keep them moving at the desired speed, despite their dehydration. To make a single coat, around 35 animals have to be killed and approximately 80 percent of minks harvested for their fur are gotten from fur farms.
Cosmetics
The use of cosmetics is also common in the fashion industry, but most people are not aware of the tests that companies do on animals. Animals are still being used to test the safety of personal care products and cosmetics. Companies like L’Oreal, Maybelline, and Cover Girl surprisingly found ways to use animals in their tests legally. It seems that the government is not making any significant effort to control animal cruelty in the cosmetic area, hence making it necessary for activist groups to chip in by creating awareness on the issue. Around 500,000 guinea pigs, mice, rabbits, and rats suffer and die due to the tests each year across the globe. Pain relief through anesthesia is also rarely to the animals during the tests, thus showing the inhumane nature of the tests. Animals have the same rights as humans, and they ought to be protected and treated under the right conditions. Live makeup testing on animals can result in infections, skin burns, poisoning, blinding, brain damage, and other painful side effects to the animals.
EFFECTS DUE TO UNETHICAL ANIMAL CRUELTY IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY
Fur production and its harm to the Environment
Indeed, around 80 percent of fur in the fashion industry are obtained from animals in fur factories. The farms host thousands of animals and are designed to maximize profits with less priority for the wellbeing of the animals as well as their impact to the environment. Environmental pollution by fur forms is in the form of feces, and a single mink skinned by fur farmers produce approximately 40 pounds of feces (…..). Mink farms produce millions of pounds in the form of feces each year, and most of it is disposed inappropriately. The World Bank states that the hazardous process used in fur dressing is disastrous and ranked among the world’s five worst industries for toxic-metal pollution. The practice of raising animals for their fur is also hazardous to the environment. For instance, in Denmark, over 19 million minks are killed each year for fur, and over 8,000 pounds of ammonia is released into the atmosphere in the process.
Harmful effects of Leather Production to the Environment
Leather production during the late 1800s was environmental-friendly as they often used salt or air to dry it, while tanning was being done with vegetable oil. Most fashion industries involved in leather production today apply complex processes during leather production, which uses chemicals that are not environmental-friendly. The production of leather now involves more dangerous substances like mineral salts, coal-tar derivatives, dyes, certain oils, and formaldehyde. Tanneries involved also produce large amounts of other pollutants like hair salt, protein, acids, sulfides, and lime sludge. Chrome-tanning facilities used in leather production wastes almost 15,000 gallons of water as well as 2,200 pounds solid waste (including flesh, trimmings, and hair).
Harmful Effects of Leather Production to People
As the animals are skinned and harvested in masses, tanneries release toxic ground water that can have adverse health effects to residents near them. Residents near tanneries are five times more likely to have leukemia. Arsenic chemical commonly used in tanneries account for most cancer cases among workers who are exposed to it daily. Most European and U.S. companies are considering relocation overseas to reduce the health impacts of leather tanning to residents. Around 90 percent of leather exports from Bangladesh are obtained from slums with tanneries that do not treat waste water. More than 3.5 million people in Ranipet, India, are vulnerable due to a factory that produces salts used by tanneries nearby. The leather industry is harmful to people and the environment as well, and it should be controlled to reduce the hazards caused in the process of leather production.
Possible Solutions
For Animals
- Fur and skin should not be obtained from the wild through trapping to control the extinction of certain animal species. The government should regulate trappings in the wild and ensure only the surpluses nature produce each year are used. This approach can help maintain the natural ecosystem produced by wild animals.
- Less suffering should be inflicted to the animals in the fur and leather production to reduce the extent of cruelty to the animals. Humane trappings should be used where possible, while foxes and minks should be provided with excellent care and nutrition.
For Fashion Industries
- Alternative methods should be used instead of animal-testing to reduce the cruelty being caused in the process. Fashion companies can use methods like vitro testing, computer models, and cultured cell tissue. Such alternatives have been proven scientifically to be more conclusive, hence making them an ethical and better option.
- Sustainable leather production can also be employed in fashion industries, including the use of non-toxic dyes rather using suedes and high-grade artificial leathers obtained from recycled polyester.
CONCLUSION
This report has shed light on the nature of animal cruelty that takes place among fashion factories as they produce leather and fur used in making shoes and clothes. The unethical practice has been controversial for several reasons that put both animals and humans at risk. Animals get physically and emotionally distressed as they are confined in one area, while others do not receive adequate health care. The unethical treatment of animals is cruel to the extent that they are not given anesthesia while they are skinned. Animals also have rights which should be observed during their slaughter rather than using unethical practices because they are inferior species. People are also affected in the process, and the workers employed in the factories are at risk at higher risks of getting cancer from the exposure to the chemicals used in the tanning process. Residents near leather-tanning factories also face health risks as they are exposed to the toxic wastes released from the tanneries without treatment. If at all animals must be bred and used for leather and fur, appropriate methods need to be used to reduce the cruelty caused as well as the environmental impact of related companies.
to reduce animal cruelty being caused by fashion industries, the industries have to consider the rights of animals as well as the use of environment-friendly approaches during the production process. For animals, less suffering and pain should be considered through appropriate practices, and the factories also need to use clean approaches in the process.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations for Animals
- Use pain relieving techniques like anesthesia
- Provide adequate nutrition and care
- Provide transport for long distance travels
- Control animal trappings to save vulnerable species
Recommendations for Fashion Industry
- Use alternative leather production techniques rather than toxic chemicals
- Use environmental friendly conditions during leather production
- Improve the working conditions of employees in the tanneries to reduce their exposure to toxic chemicals.
References