The French Senate unanimously approved a bill targeting the environmental impact of the fast fashion industry.
The proposed legislation forms part of a broader global effort by investors, companies and governments to address the growing environmental footprint of textile production and consumption, which currently makes up 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is more than international flights and maritime shipping combined.
The original bill was introduced by MP Anne-Cécile Violland and supported across party lines. It proposes a series of regulatory measures aimed at discouraging overproduction and overconsumption.
These measures include new requirements for consumer information on the environmental impacts of clothing, a ban on advertising for fast fashion brands and products, and differentiated eco-contributions based on product sustainability.
The Senate’s version of the bill has expanded on these proposed requirements, establishing clearer legal criteria for defining fast fashion and including provisions to encourage clothing repair.
An announcement announcing the Senate’s decision said:
“Never before have so many new items of clothing been put on the market. Each year, more than 100 billion items of clothing are sold worldwide. In France, in the space of a decade, the number of items of clothing sold annually has increased by one billion, and now standards at 3.3 billion products, or more than 48 per capita.”
The bill was first adopted by the National Assembly in March last year. It will now head to a joint committee of deputies and senators to reconcile the two chambers’ versions.
On a broader scale, last year the European Parliament voted in favor of a series of proposals aimed at reducing waste – including in the textile sector.
The parliament agreed that fashion brands and textile producers should be required to pay for the collection and recycling of clothing and footwear.
