Animal Cruelty in The Fashion Industry: Fur-free Fashion

Abstract

This essay discusses animal cruelty in the fashion industry the increasing trend of using faux fur in fashion and how it is changing the attitudes of consumers towards animal cruelty in the fashion industry. While many brands have switched to using faux fur due to increased public awareness, several big fashion brands like Alexander Wang, Balenciaga, and Dior still use real animal fur, possibly for their luxurious image. However, there are still environmental concerns with faux fur as it is made of plastic and takes a long time to decompose, which makes the solution of encouraging people to shop for secondhand clothing more popular and trendy. The essay also highlights organizations like the coalition to abolish the fur trade (CAFT) that have been working for years to expose the cruelty towards animals in the fur industry and have convinced businesses to stop using real animal fur altogether.

Introduction

From leather handbags to snakeskin boots and fur coats. Animals are used to make many different products. In the last few years the topic of ‘should we be using animal fur for our clothing?’ is being brought to the light in the media at an increasing rate. There are now several organizations, movements, and charities to try and stop these massive brands from killing and abusing animals for their fur. This essay discusses animal cruelty in the fashion industry the increasing trend of using faux fur in fashion and how it is changing the attitudes of consumers towards animal cruelty in the fashion industry.

There have been several brands that since the outcry of people who have stopped buying from brands who use real fur have changed their ways and switched to using faux fur. A few of these brands include Burberry, Coach, Gucci, Versace and Giorgio Armani. As well as Ralph Lauren and Vivien Westwood that have successfully been fur free for over a decade. There have also been events in the world of fashion that have took a stand against using real fur for fashion with the September 2019 London fashion week being the first ever major fashion event to not showcase any fur pieces on their runways. There are some advantages not using real fur can bring to a brand, these advantages can include an increase in customers as a large amount of customers nowadays prefer shopping at brands that are cruelty free so as a result using faux fur can bring a good light to the brand as they can advertise their use of faux fur instead of real fur as a selling point to customers.

Although there are many brands doing the more socially acceptable thing and using faux fur, there are still several brands that have not made the switch and are still making some their products out of real animal fur. Some of the biggest fashion brands that are still using real fur are, Alexander Wang, Balenciaga, Dior, Hermes, YSL (Yves Saint Laurent), Karl Lagerfeld and Valentino. These brands are known for their expensive price tags and their famous logos that people can spot from a mile away, so why would massive brands like these possibly risk their reputations by doing something so controversial and frowned upon by the media like using real animal fur for their products? Some people think they use real fur as it can seem more expensive and luxurious to the consumer, as well as being seen as a higher quality compared to faux fur.

Now although using faux fur can sound like the more socially expectable and socially conscious fur to use as it comes from a factory and not a farm. Surprisingly there are still reasons that make people wonder if real fur is actually better than faux and better for our environment. Faux fur is manufactured in factories like most of our clothing is, which means we are already aware of the massive contribution these factories make to our air pollution, producing massive amounts of greenhouse gasses into our atmosphere as well as the amount of waste they produce such as unused fabrics. Although being made in factories which depending on the brand manufacturing the product, can be infamously known for underpaying the workers making their products, the materials in which the fur is made are also not the best for our environment, the majority of the fibres in the fur are made of acrylic and polyester but to make a long story short these materials used are plastic. This meaning the materials (if thrown away) can take decades or even longer to decompose and as we know 10% of the plastic getting thrown away each year is ending up in our oceans which is already a massive issue in the media with the famous plastic straw outcry which led to many people and businesses switching to paper and metal straws. So why is it any different with faux fur? Although the recent trend on social media with vintage style clothing has led to shopping for secondhand clothing more popular and trendy, so with that in mid could encouraging people to shop second hand be the solution to stop clothing and faux fur getting thrown away and ending up polluting out oceans?

Due to the fight for these huge fashion brands to stop using real animal fur in their products has been going on for such a long time, there are now many different movements, organisations and charities that are fighting to stop the abuse of the animals and the production of the products that are costing these animals their lives. One of the many organisations I found that are helping stop the abuse of these animals in the name of fashion is the coalition to abolish the fur trade (CAFT). The CAFT is an organisation that has been working for years to expose the fur trade going on all over the world. The organisation was founded in 1990 in the UK. They get most of their income from donations and have many volunteers. Their main aims are to expose the cruelty towards animals by using investigations, campaigns, demonstrations and by educating people on the fur industry. So far the CAFT has filmed undercover fur farms in many different countries and shown light on the conditions in which these animals are living and how they are treated before they are made into the products we see on hangers. They have also managed to educate and teach many businesses selling real fur on the horrifying abuse these animals go through and have convinced them to stop using real animal fur altogether. The CAFT work with many anti-fur groups all over the world to try and bring a stop to these fur farms worldwide.

For clothing brands that still want to go down that road and use real animal fur, it has never been easier to get a hold of. All over the world in countries such as Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands and Poland there are fur farms that's main aim is to harvest animal fur. These farms are known for the abuse of hundreds of animals. The conditions these animals live in are horrendous with several animals being kept in one cage, barley being fed enough to survive. Some of these animals end up dying in the cages they are put in as a result of the cramped environment that causes them, to not get any food, get injured or kill each other in the fight to survive. There are many different types of animals that are killed for their fur, including snakes that are used to make snakeskin shoes and handbags. The main animals that are killed specifically for their fur are foxes, rabbits, sheep and lambs, minks and chiru which is a type of gazelle. The animals are killed and skinned alive to make products such as coats, hats, handbags and even household items such as rugs. Minks especially are used in the cosmetic industry to have their fur used to produce fake eyelashes and eyelash extensions as some think the fur mimics real eyelashes.

Conclusion

Therefore, the fight for stopping the abuse and killing of animals is one that is definitely worth the fight. I think there is so much for people to learn and for brands still using real fur to lean about the fur trade industry and what these innocent animals are going through in the name of fashion. I also think there are so many ways around using animals, such as using faux fur instead which although can have an impact on our environment, with the recent trend of secondhand clothing I think we could make using faux fur work while also staying conscious and mindful of our environment. I also think the fashion industry could be a huge help to the fight against animal cruelty, with their influence towards the public I think they could use their power to educate people on the subject and to even work to influence new fashion trends and ideas that do not include clothing and products that are made out of animals, so people can be fashionable without buying into an industry that is harming animals or our planet.