Key Insights
Essential data points from our research
The fashion industry is responsible for 8 to 10 percent of global carbon emissions
The fashion industry produced around 2.1 billion tonnes of GHG emissions in 2018
Fashion's emissions are more than all international flights and maritime shipping costs combined
Polyester production for textiles released about 706 billion kg of greenhouse gases in 2015
Making 1kg of fabric generates an average of 23kg of greenhouse gases
Synthetics account for 62% of all global fiber production heavily reliant on fossil fuel extraction
Transport accounts for only about 3% of the fashion value chain's total emissions
Air freight creates 40 to 50 times more CO2 emissions than sea freight for garment transport
The return rate for online fashion is 30% creating double transportation emissions for millions of items
Consumer use phase accounts for 20% of the total environmental impact of a garment
Extending the life of a garment by 9 months reduces carbon, waste, and water footprints by 20-30%
Washing and drying clothing generates 120 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually
To stay on the 1.5°C pathway the fashion industry must reduce emissions by 50% by 2030
Circular business models could reduce industry emissions by 143 million tonnes by 2030
Switching to 100% renewable energy in Tier 2 processing could save 344 million tonnes of CO2e
Consumer Behavior & Waste
- Consumer use phase accounts for 20% of the total environmental impact of a garment
- Extending the life of a garment by 9 months reduces carbon, waste, and water footprints by 20-30%
- Washing and drying clothing generates 120 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually
- Reducing washing temperature from 40°C to 30°C saves about 35% of energy and associated emissions
- Skipping one laundry load a week saves almost 100kg of CO2e per year
- The average number of times a garment is worn before being discarded has decreased by 36% compared to 15 years ago
- One garbage truck of clothes is burned or landfilled every second causing methane and CO2 release
- UK households discard 300000 tonnes of clothing to landfill annually
- Use of tumble dryers accounts for 75% of the total energy used in the laundry process
- 85% of all textiles throw away in the US go to landfills or are incinerated
- Ironing a shirt consumes energy equivalent to driving a car for 1 km
- Buying one used item instead of new reduces its carbon footprint by 82%
- If everyone bought one used item instead of new this year it would save 5.7 billion lbs of CO2e
- Clothing utilization in China has decreased by 70% in the last 15 years driving faster replacement emissions
- Microplastics released during washing are derived from fossil fuels and contribute to ocean carbon cycles
- Dry cleaning uses hazardous chemicals and high energy resulting in higher emissions than wet cleaning
- 60% of consumers say they have more clothes than they need leading to wasted embodied carbon
- Landfilled textiles decompose to produce methane which is 28 times more potent than CO2
- Only 1% of clothing is recycled into new clothing meaning 99% of embodied carbon is lost after use
- The average American throws away approximately 81 pounds of clothing per year
Interpretation
The fashion carbon crisis is less haute couture and more household habits: one fifth of a garment’s impact happens in consumer use, washing and drying produce 120 million tonnes of CO2e a year with tumble dryers using 75 percent of laundry energy and ironing a shirt costing about the same as driving one kilometer, yet buying one used item cuts its footprint by 82 percent, washing at 30°C saves roughly 35 percent of energy, skipping one weekly load saves almost 100 kg CO2e a year, and extending a garment’s life by nine months trims footprints by 20 to 30 percent—so unless we stop treating clothes like fast food and burning or burying a truck of textiles every second, 99 percent of embodied carbon will be lost and microplastics and potent methane will keep accelerating the damage.
Future Projections & Solutions
- To stay on the 1.5°C pathway the fashion industry must reduce emissions by 50% by 2030
- Circular business models could reduce industry emissions by 143 million tonnes by 2030
- Switching to 100% renewable energy in Tier 2 processing could save 344 million tonnes of CO2e
- The fashion industry will consume 26% of the world's carbon budget by 2050 if unchecked
- Decarbonizing material production would contribute to 61% of the necessary emission reductions
- If the industry fails to act emissions will rise to 2.7 billion tonnes a year by 2030
- Adopting regenerative agriculture for raw materials creates a carbon sink potential
- The resale market is growing 11 times faster than traditional retail reducing demand for new carbon-heavy production
- Rental models can reduce carbon emissions by diverting waste but logistics emissions must be managed
- Nearshoring production to reduce transport distances could lower logistics emissions by 20%
- Eliminating waste in the supply chain could save 4% of total industry emissions
- Digital sampling and 3D design can reduce sample-making emissions by 90%
- By 2030 one in five garments needs to be traded through a circular business model to meet climate goals
- 45% of fashion companies have set emissions targets but only a fraction meet science-based criteria
- Closed-loop recycling has the potential to reduce the industry's energy consumption by 53%
- Improving energy efficiency in manufacturing by 2% annually creates massive long-term carbon savings
- Government regulations on textile waste could force a 10% reduction in industry carbon output
- On-demand manufacturing reduces overproduction and can lower carbon impact by 25%
- 60% of sustainable fashion claims by major brands were found to be unsubstantiated greenwashing slowing real progress
- Achieving Net Zero by 2050 requires an investment of over $1 trillion in the fashion sector
Interpretation
To keep the planet in style the fashion industry must cut emissions by half by 2030 or face a rise to 2.7 billion tonnes a year and the consumption of 26% of the world's carbon budget by 2050; practical levers such as circular business models, 100% renewables in Tier 2 processing, decarbonized material production and digital sampling could together save hundreds of millions of tonnes and, when paired with resale, rental, nearshoring and on-demand manufacturing to curb overproduction, make one in five garments circular by 2030, but brands must move beyond greenwashing, meet science-based targets and mobilize over $1 trillion in investment.
Global Industry Impact
- The fashion industry is responsible for 8 to 10 percent of global carbon emissions
- The fashion industry produced around 2.1 billion tonnes of GHG emissions in 2018
- Fashion's emissions are more than all international flights and maritime shipping costs combined
- If the fashion sector were a country it would be the sixth largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world
- The apparel industry's global emissions are projected to increase by 50% by 2030 if current trends continue
- Textile production generates 1.2 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year
- The carbon footprint of a single cotton t-shirt is estimated at 2.1 kg of CO2e
- A pair of jeans produces an average of 33.4 kg of CO2e throughout its life cycle
- 70% of the fashion industry's emissions come from upstream activities specifically material production
- The footwear industry alone accounts for 1.4% of global greenhouse gas emissions
- Apparel and footwear are responsible for approximately 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions according to some conservative estimates
- The global apparel industry emits more greenhouse gases than France, Germany, and the UK combined
- 71% of the fashion industry's greenhouse gas emissions are generated in the Asia-Pacific region
- Synthetic fibers have a higher carbon footprint per kg than natural fibers but often retain durability longer
- The European Union's textile consumption has the fourth highest impact on climate change per person
- Australia is the second highest consumer of textiles per person driving high per capita fashion emissions
- Total greenhouse gas emissions from textiles production stands at 1.2 billion tonnes annually
- The fashion industry contributes equally to the climate crisis as the entire continent of Europe
- Global production of clothing has doubled since 2000 causing a parallel spike in carbon emissions
- Without intervention the fashion industry's CO2 emissions are expected to rise to nearly 2.8 billion tonnes per year by 2030
Interpretation
Fashion now accounts for roughly 8 to 10 percent of global emissions and already out-pollutes all international flights and shipping combined, producing about 2.1 billion tonnes in 2018 and on track to hit nearly 2.8 billion by 2030 unless we stop treating clothes like disposable fashion statements and actually fix the material-heavy production that drives 70 percent of its footprint.
Raw Materials & Production
- Polyester production for textiles released about 706 billion kg of greenhouse gases in 2015
- Making 1kg of fabric generates an average of 23kg of greenhouse gases
- Synthetics account for 62% of all global fiber production heavily reliant on fossil fuel extraction
- Nylon generates nitrous oxide during production a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent than CO2
- Producing a single polyester shirt emits 5.5 kg of CO2 compared to 2.1 kg for a cotton shirt
- 38% of the fashion industry's carbon footprint comes from the production of raw materials
- Wet processes like dyeing and finishing generate approximately 36% of the apparel industry's carbon impact
- Leather production is linked to deforestation which accounts for significant indirect carbon emissions
- Nitrogen fertilizers used in cotton farming release significant amounts of greenhouse gases
- Manufacturing factories in China and India mostly rely on coal resulting in high carbon intensity for textiles
- Viscose production can be high carbon if not sourced from certified sustainable forests due to logging
- 15% of the carbon footprint of a garment is created just by cutting and sewing the fabric
- Using recycled polyester reduces carbon emissions by 37% compared to virgin polyester
- Organic cotton has the potential to reduce global warming potential by 46% compared to conventional cotton
- The energy used in yarn preparation contributes roughly 28% to the total textile manufacturing emissions
- Production of 1 ton of leather results in 170 kg of CO2 equivalent emissions mostly from animal husbandry
- Coal boilers are used in over 25% of textile mills in major production countries significantly raising emissions
- Wool production generates methane from sheep contributing disproportionately to climate change per kg of fiber
- Spandex or elastane production involves high energy consumption and petrochemical inputs
- Textile mills use nearly 130 million tonnes of coal annually worldwide
Interpretation
If the fashion industry had a runway for climate damage, it would be paved in polyester and coal: synthetics make up 62 percent of fibers, polyester production spewed about 706 billion kilograms of greenhouse gases in 2015, nylon emits potent nitrous oxide and wool releases methane, wet processing, yarn prep and coal-fired mills add huge carbon loads so that a polyester shirt costs roughly 5.5 kg of CO2 versus 2.1 kg for cotton, yet switching to recycled polyester (37 percent lower emissions) or organic cotton (potentially 46 percent lower) shows there are credible ways to shrink the industry's staggering footprint.
Supply Chain & Logistics
- Transport accounts for only about 3% of the fashion value chain's total emissions
- Air freight creates 40 to 50 times more CO2 emissions than sea freight for garment transport
- The return rate for online fashion is 30% creating double transportation emissions for millions of items
- Packaging waste from fashion logistics contributes to the industry’s embodied carbon footprint
- Last-mile delivery emissions are predicted to rise by 32% by 2030 largely driven by fashion e-commerce
- 80% of cross-border e-commerce shipments are fashion-related increasing air cargo reliance
- Brands destroying unsold inventory through incineration releases stored carbon directly into the atmosphere
- Replacing plastic mailers with recycled paper can reduce packaging carbon emissions by up to 50%
- Shifting from air to sea transport can mitigate logistics carbon impact by over 90%
- 6% of industry emissions are attributed to the retail operations phase including lighting and cooling stores
- Warehouse automation and energy efficiency can reduce logistics emissions by 10-20%
- The carbon cost of free returns involves approximately 15 million metric tons of CO2 annually in the US alone
- Deadstock fabric remaining in supply chains leads to wasted production emissions for 15% of all materials
- Reverse logistics for apparel returns requires 20% more space and energy than outbound logistics
- Heavy fuel oil used in maritime shipping of textiles releases black carbon affecting polar ice melt
- Single-use polybags used in transit result in significant fossil fuel consumption for plastic production
- Trucking creates 4 times more emissions per ton-mile than rail when moving fashion goods inland
- Express delivery options increase the carbon footprint of an online fashion purchase by at least 50%
- 25% of garments bought online are returned doubling the emissions for that leg of the journey
- Unsold stock destruction in France alone was estimated to be worth 630 million euros representing massive wasted emissions
Interpretation
Transport represents only about 3% of fashion's value-chain emissions, yet the sector's addiction to air freight that emits 40 to 50 times more CO2 than sea, widespread express delivery and 25 to 30 percent return rates that double journey emissions, single-use packaging and the burning of unsold stock that releases stored carbon, combined with rising last-mile emissions and black carbon from heavy fuel oil, have turned logistics into a backstage furnace for the climate that could be dramatically cooled by shifting to sea freight to cut logistics impact by over 90 percent, replacing plastic mailers with recycled paper to halve packaging emissions, and reforming returns and warehouse practices to avoid the roughly 15 million metric tons of CO2 attributed annually to free returns in the United States.
References
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