European parliament votes to curb fast fashion to boost sustainability

The European Parliament has approved the new strategy for sustainable and circular textiles with a resounding 600 votes in favour, with 17 against and 16 abstentions. This is a significant blow to the ‘fast fashion’ industry, as the parliament seeks to encourage more sustainable and ethically responsible choices in the textile industry. This includes the production of clothing that is more durable, easier to reuse, repair, and recycle, and respectful of human, social, and labour rights, the environment, and animal welfare throughout the supply chain.

The plan also calls for both European Union and national measures to put an end to the prevalence of ‘fast fashion’—a term used to describe the rapid production of high volumes of clothing.

Members of the European Parliament are calling for future European Union legislation to include specific measures addressing these issues. They believe consumers should have access to more information to make sustainable choices and are calling for a ban on the destruction of unsold and returned textile goods as part of the upcoming revision of the ecodesign regulation.

MEPs want clear rules to stop ‘greenwashing’ by producers, which is the practice of making misleading claims about the environmental benefits of a product or service. This request is being made in the context of ongoing legislative work related to empowering consumers in the green transition and regulating green claims.

MEPs also want the upcoming revision of the Waste Framework Directive to include specific separate targets for textile waste prevention, collection, reuse and recycling. They urged the European Commission to launch the initiative to prevent and minimise the release of microplastics and microfibers into the environment, without further delay.

Rapporteur Delara Burkhardt said: "Consumers alone cannot reform the global textile sector through their purchasing habits. If we allow the market to self-regulate, we leave the door open for a fast fashion model that exploits people and the planet’s resources. The EU must legally oblige manufacturers and large fashion companies to operate more sustainably.

“People and the planet are more important than the textile industry’s profits. The disasters that have occurred in the past, like the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh, growing textile landfills in Ghana and Nepal, polluted water, and microplastics in our oceans, show what happens when we do not pursue this principle. We have waited long enough; it is time to make a change!"