Resource Futures provides data support for WRAP’s key sustainable clothing report for second year

WRAP – Waste and Resources Action Programme – has contracted independent environmental consultancy Resource Futures to support the development of its Sustainable Clothing Action Plan (SCAP) Progress Report for a second consecutive year.

SCAP is a voluntary commitment made by stakeholders in the textile industry – including brands and retailers representing more than 48 per cent of UK clothing sales volume – to collectively reduce the environmental impacts of the garments they produce.

Working closely with SCAP signatories, Resource Futures will analyse and prepare their 2020 sales data for inclusion in SCAP’s bespoke ‘footprint calculator’. This involves streamlining sales datasets into a standardised format that isolates and quantifies the mass of individual fibre types.

Resource Futures will also work with each brand and retailer to complete their SCAP review checklist, considering improved actions taken around alternative materials and fibres – such as switching from conventional cotton to Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) cotton – and ensuring correct reporting.

A final ‘footprint report’ outlining brand and retailer performance around carbon, water, and waste for their 2020 sales will be used to inform WRAP’s 2021 SCAP Progress Report.

“We’re proud to be supporting brands and retailers in driving sustainability action in the textile and clothing industry. Despite a very challenging year, we’re looking forward to seeing how the industry has continued to minimise its fashion footprint.”

A spokesperson from WRAP

As with many industries, 2020 was a tumultuous year for textiles and many clothing brands and retailers continue to face unprecedented challenges. At the same time, consumer demand for sustainable clothing is at an all-time high; a report by McKinsey title ‘Fashion’s New Must Have: Sustainable Sourcing at Scale’, found online searches for ‘sustainable fashion’ tripled between 2016 and 2019.

“The 2021 iteration of the SCAP Progress Report is of marked importance. With the ‘high street’ hanging in precarious balance, many in the textile industry find themselves at a crossroads; in need of rethinking their supply chains and business plans. It is in this context that taking the right step forward in terms of sustainability is critical.”

Carla Worth, Project Manager at Resource Futures

“Sustainable action is urgently needed; from strategy and implementation through to measuring impact and communicating results. The SCAP Progress Report will play a key role in bringing attention to the efforts being made to reduce environmental impact within the textile industry.”

George Cole, Project Director at Resource Futures

Resource Futures previously contributed to the WRAP 2020 SCAP Progress Report.