Fashion goes green on the occasion of World Earth Day

World population and consumptions are at an all time high. With fashion trends changing and evolving at the blink of an eye, fast fashion has become a way of life for most fashion conscious people. Quick turnaround times, cheap and easy availability make fast fashion clothing extremely attractive to consumers. However, on the flip side, the fads and fickle trends are seriously harming the environment by generating extreme amounts of waste. Nelson Jaffery- head design, Aditya Birla Group, says, "Earlier, each item of clothing would be worn at least 50 times, however recently that number has fallen down to 5-10 times. Less than 5 per cent of the clothes produced globally are recycled, which means more than 95 per cent of garments end up in landfills."

If fast fashion continues to grow at the existing rate, it will act as a catalyst in global warming. The oceans will keep getting more polluted with plastic products and toxic chemicals will enter the food chain. These carcinogenic materials in the food chain will plague the mankind with health related problems.

Abhishek Yadav, design head, Spykar Lifestyles, says, "Recycling and up-cycling is a great concept that promotes sustainable fashion and focuses on reducing the waste. Slow fashion works on the idea of investing in classic pieces. They may not be in line with the latest fad, but they are always fashionable, which reduces the chance of people discarding the attires even when the trends change. However, just reducing consumption is not enough. It's important to switch to raw materials which degrade naturally and are gentler on the environment."

Now is the time for the fashion industry to shift focus and adopt more sustainable methods of production. Nelson says, "Natural cellulose based fibres like fabric made out of wood pulp have harmful effects on the environment but they are also gentler on the skin. Due to better air circulation within these fabrics, people with sensitive skin are recommended to wear these garments Great fluidity and texture also increase the fashion quotient of these fabrics."

Whereas Abhishek Yadav adds, "In addition to this, companies also need to make technological advances and modifications to the production processes to ensure an overall cleaner approach. We use solar power and rely heavily on latest technology like laser machines, ozone wash and cloud wash technology that has aided the brand to lower the material to liquid ratio considerably. All denims that Spykar rolls out are made using environmentally sensitive processes right from recycled cotton, washes that require less water to technologically advanced dry processes like laser techniques."