Over the past several years, allegations of human and labor rights violations in
the Asian supply
chains
of global apparel brands have come to light. The far-too-common system of
relying on subcontracting and relying on multiple sources for raw materials and
goods often means that brands have little visibility in what is happening along
their supply chains – until it's too late.
But it is possible to source ethically from Asia – including from China.
Fair Trade Cashmere
(FTC) — a European premium brand of high-end cashmere products — has been
doing so since 2003, when they first started working with goat farmers in
Shaanxi, China.
“For my father, who has been in Asia since the 1990s, it was crucial from the
beginning to understand where the product actually comes from,” Adrian
Knezovic — who, with his sister, is now the second generation to work at the
family-run, Switzerland-based company — told Sustainable Brands™.
“The local farmers are, of course, the first people in the supply chain.”
According to Knezovic, 70 percent of global cashmere comes from China —
specifically, Shaanxi and Inner Mongolia provinces, both remote regions. In
the early 2000s, few luxury brands bothered to venture to the distant goat farms
that were producing their raw, high-quality cashmere.
Vertically integrated supply chain
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FTC took a different approach, starting with building a relationship with
farmers in Shaanxi. Today, FTC has a fully integrated supply chain — with direct
ownership of farms, factories and facilities in Shaanxi, Hebei and Europe.
On top of this, FTC has a high standard for its cashmere, starting with how the
goats are fed and cared for at both its own company farm and the small family
farms it sources from. Workers throughout the supply chain are paid living
wages
and provided benefits — including education for family members; and the company
has established guidelines for reducing waste, pollution and climate impact.
Having a fully traceable, end-to-end, vertical supply chain is an
accomplishment; but FTC does not expect us to just take its word for it: The
company has either achieved, or is in process of achieving, several
independently verified certifications — including Made in Green by
Oeko-Tex —
and has been certified climate neutral by
ClimatePartner.
The value of certifications, to FTC, is not just to identify which suppliers are
following its code of conduct, as is often the case for other brands; it gives
consumers another way to verify the brand’s claims, creating more trust.
“One of our biggest challenges is to reach the consumer and to get their
attention and tell our story,” Knezovic says. Not everyone will visit their
website and see the stories of the Shaanxi farmers they’ve worked with for
generations – for them, certification is a meaningful shortcut.
Next-level traceability
FTC is also working on adding a third layer of traceability, via DNA tracing.
It’s adopting a new technology from
Haelixa — a type of marker that
is sprayed on cashmere at the farms and can be tested on store shelves to prove
that it is from their farms in Shaanxi.
“It's impossible to tamper with,” Knezovic asserts. “We really liked the
technology and felt this can also help us be more authentic and transparent. It
is a physical proof of our own value chain.”
FTC believes it has nothing to hide and is willing to show that through its
unique, vertically integrated, traceable model — very different from the norm in
the garment industry, including among higher-end brands.
“When you talk about fashion brands, they often don't know where their raw
material comes from because it's so complex,” he says. “Normally, cashmere
changes hands though several parties within China alone. However, we are with
the goats — our own goats. We take care of them and also manage all the
following steps in the supply chain. That is unique.”
Benefiting supplier communities
FTC believes that if brands want to be sustainable and have a positive impact in
their community, it is not only about ethical sourcing, but creating lasting
value in the long term. FTC can see how, over nearly 20 years, it has helped
bring education, better livelihoods, and new opportunities to the people that
make up its supply chain. That comes alongside a business benefit, too – a
sustainable source of high-quality raw materials.
Knezovic laments how, in fashion, companies are often looking to shift markers,
or sources, just to save money. To him, there is value in long-term
relationships; and that is also where a brand can make a real difference in a
community.
“If you really want to be sustainable, I think you also have to understand and
really work together with your whole supply chain,” he says. “I don't
necessarily think that you need to have your own raw material source like we do;
but you definitely have to try to keep it steady — because then, you can have a
long-term impact for the people that produce the raw material or work in the
manufacturing.”
Could global apparel brands do it?
This takes significant time, effort and dedication. But if FTC can do all this
despite being a small brand, why can’t a global brand — with a vastly larger
sourcing department — also implement a system with multiple layers of
traceability?
“Very often, there is a lack of understanding of their supply chain,” says
Sara Mettler, who leads FTC’s marketing and communication. “The consequence
is that brands cannot be sure about really telling the truth. They don't know
what is happening within and along their supply chain. In our case, we know what
we're doing, so there's no reason to hide.”
From the 2013 Rana Plaza factory
fire in
Bangladesh, which killed 1,132 garment workers and was sourcing several
major western brands; to the ongoing human rights crisis in Xinjiang, China,
where forced labor of ethnic
Uyghurs
has implicated more than 80
brands;
it’s clear that the conventional model for apparel supply chains — characterized
by opaque sourcing and reliance on third-party
audits
— is not working. More and more tools — including platforms such as
TrusTrace
and Laudes Foundation’s Transparency in Action
portal
— are emerging to help brands gain more control, but industry efforts remain
piecemeal.
For apparel brands to protect themselves against all of the aforementioned risks
of opacity, they must have clear, verifiable visibility throughout their supply
chains. FTC shows that it can be done; but it requires a vastly different way of
thinking.
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Media, Campaign and Research Consultant
Nithin is a freelance writer who focuses on global economic, and environmental issues with an aim at building channels of communication and collaboration around common challenges.
Published Sep 6, 2022 8am EDT / 5am PDT / 1pm BST / 2pm CEST