A Tough Conversation
I’ve been avoiding looking into this topic; to be honest, I didn’t really want to know the answer. But as Fall has officially hit and the temperatures are beginning to steadily drop, I’m getting ready to break out all of my favorite sweaters. In particular, I cannot wait to take my cashmere sweaters for a spin. Despite grand efforts to turn a blind eye to conversations about cashmere and its environmental impact, I figure it’s time to confront the issue head-on.
“All a woman needs to be chic is a raincoat, two suits, a pair of trousers and a cashmere sweater.”
To start, the production of cashmere harkens back to the 13th century in the Kashmir region – Inner Mongolia, China, Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Afghanistan (Conway, 1998). Up until the 18th and 19th centuries, it was primarily used by Iranian and Indian rulers for religious and political ceremonies (Rauturier, 2019). But during the 18th century, Europeans discovered the fabric and it exploded in popularity – particularly in Scotland and France. Today, cashmere is still produced and refined in Asia before it comes to the West.
Cashmere comes from goats. It can be taken from any goat, but in particular, there is one “nomadic breed that produces hair fine enough” (para. 6). As stated by Rauturier (2019), “these goats have very little fat to protect them in the winter from the cold arid plains, so they develop soft, fleecy fibres underneath their coat, on the underbelly. These hairs are what makes cashmere” (para. 7). Typically, producers don’t take these fine hairs from the goats in cold temperatures – they wait until the temperatures rise when the goats naturally shed their coats. They then “comb out the fine hair, sort it by hand, send it to facilities to be cleaned, refined, baled and shipped to Europe, where they’re sold to companies” (para. 8).
Now that we know how it’s produced, let’s look into the environmental impact. Unlike other harmful materials common in clothing production – polyester, nylon and other synthetics – cashmere is a natural fibre, so it decomposes over time. That’s not where the problem really lies – it’s a bit bigger than that. Due to its rarity (it takes four goats to produce enough hair to make one sweater), cashmere was initially very expensive and luxurious – “it’s something you invested in and passed on to your children, the fabric getting softer with time” (para. 9). But as the democratization of luxury continues and fast fashion rises steadily, cashmere has become much more accessible to the masses; and on top of that, the demand for accessible cashmere is astronomical. As stated by Jessica Davis (2020) for Harper’s Bazaar, “management consulting company Bain & Company previously calculated that cashmere makes up $4 billion of the $60 billion luxury market, so there’s no denying the demand for this sought-after luxury material” (para. 3). What consumers fail to recognize is that as luxury goods like cashmere become more accessible, their production becomes more and more unsustainable – “…as always with fast fashion, when you get a low price, someone or something is paying, somewhere” (Rauturier, 2019, para. 10).
Image courtesy of Le Kasha.
First of all, as is the case with any animal-derived material, the goats used to produce cashmere leave behind a carbon footprint (Davis, 2020). An increase in desire for cashmere means that more and more goats are needed to match the demand, so more and more land is being used – leading to the eventual degradation of the grasslands. On top of that, the natural environment in Mongolia and China, where cashmere is typically farmed, is suffering. Davis (2020) states, “according to the United Nations Development Programme, 90 per cent of Mongolia is fragile dry land and under increasing threat of desertification, while the temperatures in China are, like much of the world, getting more extreme” (para. 6). This means that the environment where the goats would typically graze is not really conducive to effective cashmere production. Olivia Dowie, creative director of sustainable cashmere brand, Riley Studio, explains to Davis (2020):
With the climate issue we’ve got going on and such extreme weather, the goats are either in drought or are extremely cold as we take their incredibly warm fibres…The biggest issue is this destruction of their natural habitats that they live in. They don’t have enough grass to eat throughout the year and a lot of them are malnourished. (para. 7)
The combination of global warming and fast fashion have made what was once a luxurious, treasured material a destructive and harmful force to both the environment and the poor animals from which we take.
If you’ve gotten to this point, I’m sure you’re feeling a bit guilty – so am I; but this information doesn’t mean that you have to give up cashmere. This means that we, as consumers, must be more responsible, sustainable and educated. If you want to purchase a cashmere product, look for brands like Le Kasha and Riley Studio that are finding more sustainable ways to produce cashmere. Le Kasha produces all of its pieces in one factory, which minimizes its environmental impact. It also works with its farmers and herders to practice “sustainable grazing,” which “[ensures] preservation of the land” (para. 8). Riley Studio uses “post-consumer” cashmere to create its pieces. By using off-cuts and old pieces, it takes a bit of the pressure off herds and farmers to constantly produce more and more cashmere. On top of all that, and in my opinion one of the most important parts, make sure you’re looking into the brand’s “accreditation to ensure animal welfare is respected” (para. 16). Davis (2020) explains, “Le Kasha, for example, is ECO-certified, guaranteeing that all the goats used in their production processes are well treated” (para. 16).
While I certainly recognize that the lofty price tags associated with cashmere are not universally accessible, we must think about where the cost is hidden when the purchasing price is substantially lower. Think about the environment, the carbon footprint, the land and the precious animals who give us their coats so we can have some of our own. Treasure cashmere as the luxury that it is and purchase from brands who take that responsibility seriously.
Bye for now,
McGee