Dirty is the New Clean – Levi Try Eco-Fashion
Source: http://store.levi.com/waterless/
Can Jeans fit into Eco-Fashion?
Skinny, flare, boyfriend, dark-wash, boot cut, distressed—some of the many styles of jeans on the market designed to fit any personality and any occasion. As a self-proclaimed fashonista, I know a good pair of jeans is a staple in any closet. What I didn’t know, until a recent New York Times article, is that this fashion staple has a less than fashionable side—its water footprint.
According to a life cycle analysis conducted by Levi Strauss & Company on 11 styles of their jeans, one pair of jeans consumes, on average, approximately 6,036 liters of water in its lifetime. That number includes the water needed to grow the cotton, to produce the fabric and manufacture the garment, to transport the finished product, and finally to wash the jeans at the consumer level.
To put that into more tangible terms, your favorite pair of jeans consumes the same amount of water as 43 cups of coffee, or amazingly, a little more than four and a half Hershey’s® sized bars of chocolate. Another study on embedded water, independent of Levi Strauss’ study, placed the number even higher, at 10,850 liters of water per pair of jeans (weighing approximately one kilogram). Unfortunately, these numbers point to an ugly truth—jeans are water guzzlers.
Life Cycle of Levi's Jeans. Source: http://store.levi.com/waterless/
Digging a little deeper into the life cycle analysis, we can see that the majority of water consumption occurs at the cotton growing stage—accounting for about 50% of total water consumption—and at the consumer use stage (i.e. washing and drying) which accounts for another 45% of total water use. In a concerted effort to promote sustainability and to protect its continued existence, Levi Strauss has taken several steps to reduce its products’ water consumption before it even reaches the consumer.
Following last year’s abrupt wake up call when floods in Pakistan and droughts in China destroyed significant portions of the cotton crop, sending prices skyrocketing, Levi Strauss championed nonprofit programs in India, Pakistan, and West and Central Africa that taught farmers the latest techniques in irrigation and rainwater capture. Additionally, Levi Strauss has partnered with other big cotton users to leverage their collective brand power through the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). This nonprofit, founded in 2005 by nongovernmental organizations and giant retailers such as Gap Inc., H&M, IKEA, and the WWF, “aims to promote measurable improvements in the key environmental and social impacts of cotton cultivation worldwide to make it more economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable” (“About BCI”). The nonprofit has successfully promoted its new drip system for crop irrigation which showed an average 32% reduction in water and pesticide use. Levi Strauss and BCI have deemed the resultant crop, “better cotton”, and the clothing company aims to increase “better cotton” use in its products from 5% to 20% by 2015.
Levi's Water<Less Line. Source: Jim Wilson/The New York Times
To further promote its commitment sustainable products and water conservation, Levis Strauss introduced a new line of Water<Less™ jeans that consume 28% less water on average and utilize a stone-washing technique that harnesses the mechanical energy of falling stones to create that worn-in look, rather than the usual 42 liter water bath. These Water<Less™ jeans also come with tags that encourage customers to wash jeans less. The clothing company also launched a new website to parallel the release of its water-conscious, which demonstrates the life cycle of their jeans and includes charming infographics to help consumers save water.
On the slightly bizarre side, the denim giant even suggests placing jeans in the freezer as this will supposedly kill bacteria that would otherwise cause your jeans to smell. I tried this with a pair of my favorite skinny jeans. After two hours in the freezer, my jeans came out relatively fresh smelling with a hint of frozen dumpling scent. When using your freezer to do the laundry, remember to allot time for defrosting!
Yay go Jenny!! This is awesome, as expected
haha your last paragraph left me chuckling! but on a serious note Jenny, thanks for sharing. I hope more brands take suit and follow these sustainable initiatives, gotta love Levi's!
Thanks Steph! I had a lot of fun writing the article and I hope more brands follow suit as well. More importantly, I hope companies taking on more sustainable initiatives are as transparent and publicly engaged as Levi Strauss.
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