PRESENTATION ON

SUSTAINABLE
PURCHASING

By:

ASINE AMON SOY

RAHUL KUMAR
RISHAV

SUCHISMITA SHAURYA

SUSTAINABLE PURCHASING

Sustainable purchasing is about including

social, environmental, financial and
performance factors in a systematic way.

It involves thinking about the reasons for

using the product (the service) and assessing
how these services could be best met.

sustainable purchasing involves considering

how products are made, what they are made
of, where they come from and how they will
be used and disposed.

INTRODUCTION TO APPAREL OPTION

This section provides information on currently available

apparel options. Living within the boundaries of our
sustainability objectives requires us to apply two main
strategies:

Dematerialization requires that we reduce the amount

of materials as much as possible; and that we continually
move toward the use of 100% recycled content.

Substitution requires that we find less harmful materials

to replace those that currently damage and are not
recyclable.

CHOOSE products that employ a combination of

characteristics listed in the left hand column, and AVOID
products that demonstrate characteristic in the right-hand
column.
CHOOSE

Recycled fabrics
Biodegradable dyes
Certification for fair labour
practices
Organic fibres
Renewable materials

AVOID

Treatment with chlorine

based bleaches
Wrinkle-resistant
materials

APPAREL OPTION
OPTION: REUSED OR RECYCLED
CLOTHING/FIBRES
STRATEGY: DEMATERIALIZATION

Choose products made from post-consumer recycled material where

the input materials are from products collected after theyve been
used by consumers, for example fleece made from recycled plastic

Fibre recycling can be classified into two categories:

Chemical recycling.
Mechanical recycling

1.
2.

In chemical recycling, polyester is broken down into DMT (dimethyl

terephthalate) and EG (ethylene glycol) and Nylon 6 is broken down
into caprolactam. These precursor chemicals are then purified and
used to make new polyester and nylon fibre

In mechanical recycling the fabric is chopped

and shredded down to fibre and spun into
yarn again. Mechanical recycling can also
describe the process of melting synthetics
back into resins, then extruding fibre and
spinning yarn. Mechanical recycling can
handle a wide variety of fibres.

Reusing zippers, sliders, hooks and buttons

has the least environmental impact, but there
can be issues with quality, durability and
strength. Some companies such as YKK are
introducing environmentally friendly zippers.
Products include a zipper made from
recycled PET and a zipper comprised of corn
and plant materials that is biodegradable
and compostable

OPTION: CHOOSE ORGANIC COTTON

STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION NATURELIKE (SO 2)

The term organic describes a method of farming that

does not use toxic and persistent pesticides or
fertilizers, sewage sludge, irradiation or genetic
engineering.

The Organic Crop Improvement Association

(OCIA) is an organization that acts as a third party
in verifying that organic products meet international
organic standards.

Cotton is one of the most heavily irrigated and

pesticide intensive crops in the world and currently
accounts for 25% of the worlds insecticide use and
10% of the worlds pesticide use.

OPTION: CHOOSE RENEWABLE RESOURCES

STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION

Fabrics made from renewable resources like hemp, bamboo, wool,

linen (made of flax fibres) and Tencel (cellulose fibre from trees)
provides a great alternative to cotton and synthetics. For ex:-

Hemp: Hemp can be grown without the use of pesticides,

herbicides, or fungicides, and thrives in our Canadian climate.
Hemp is 100% biodegradable and is easily dyed.

Bamboo:- It is fast-growing and can thrive without the use of

pesticides, fertilizers, or irrigation. Bamboo effectively sequesters
atmospheric carbon throughout its lifecycle. Fabric made from
bamboo is soft, absorbent, washable and 100% biodegradable.

Wool :- Wool from sheep, alpaca, angora, goat and lama is a

natural and renewable fibre made of keratin, a tough insoluble
protein with a unique structure that gives it natural resistance to
sunlight, water, acids, rot and mildew.

Linen is a textile made from fibres in the

stalk of a flax plant. Linen is renewable
and biodegradable, but there may be
sustainability impacts associated with the
manner in which the flax is grown.

Lyocell/Tencel:- It is made of the cellulose

extracted from trees usually Birch or Oak.
It is soft, gentle, durable, biodegradable, and
machine washable. The cellulose is
extracted from the wood.

OPTION: CHOOSE OEKO-TEX AND

OTHER CERTIFIED TEXTILES
STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION
Choose products certified by Oeko-Tex for their use of
biodegradable dyes.
These certified products pose no human health risks to
those working in, or near, the manufacturing plant or for
those wearing the clothing, as well as eliminating
chemicals which may release pollutants into the
waterways and atmosphere.

Bluesign certification ensures companies are providing

textile products that are environmentally friendly, pose
no health hazards,and conserve resources to the greatest
possible extent.

OPTION: THIRD PARTY CERTIFIED ETHICAL

WORKER
CONDITION CERTIFICATION
STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION (SO 4)

Organizations such as Fair Labour Association (FLA) and

Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) certify
that proper labour standards are being applied.

Fair Trade fabric and clothing refers only to the production of

the fabric and not to the manufacturing of garments. There
are currently no fair trade or ethical certification processes for
clothing manufacturing.

OPTION: AVOID WRINKLE RESISTANCE

STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION

Wrinkle-resistant (permanent press) clothing is generally

treated with formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is listed by the
International Agency for Research on Cancer as a
probable cancer-causing agent.

OPTION: AVOID CHLORINE BLEACH

TREATMENTS
STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION

Chlorine bleach is commonly used as both a dye and a precolour

treatment.

Chlorine bleach can have negative impacts for both human health
and the environment.

Chlorine can cause burns to the skin and eyes, respiratory problems
and lead to liver or kidney damage.

When discharged into wastewater, chlorine can interact with other

compounds to form chlorinated organic compounds (COCs), which
are persistent in nature and increase in concentration.

OPTION: CHOOSE SUSTAINABLE MODES

OF SHIPPING
STRATEGY: SUBSTITUTION

Another area to consider in clothing manufacturing is to

ensure that the purchase and shipment of clothing
adheres to the guidelines outlined for Sustainable
Transportation.

CURRENTLY PREFFERRED
OPTIONS
Identify the service: At a basic level, clothing provides
protection from the climate and environmental elements.
Identify the contents: Clothing made of natural
materials such as cotton, bamboo, hemp, wool, linen and
tencel should be preffered.
Identify sustainability impacts: It means sustainability
impact should be in concern while purchasing the
clothes. For ex- Some of the inks and dyes used in
apparel contain heavy metals. These are released into
nature when clothing begins to breakdown in nature.

 Envision

sustainable apparel: Sustainability requires

that materials be kept within natural cycles or tight
technical cycles where materials can be reused
indefinitely in processes that do not move us away
from our sustainability objectives.

THANK
YOU