How The Fashion Industry Is Becoming Cruelty-Free

“Fashion should be fun, not fatal.”

As you know, animal cruelty is a harsh reality of the fashion industry. Thankfully, brands and designers across the world are gradually going green. Our fashion industry is moving towards a ‘vegan future’. Social media and organizations like PETA have shown us enough of the reality behind the world of fashion and being unaware of animal suffering is no longer an excuse, one should know where their goods are coming from.

Undoubtedly, the latest fashion statement is to sweep all the cruelty from the fashion world. Being the largest consumer industry, fashion plays a huge role in protecting our planet. Now, consumers demand stylish but foremost animal and eco-friendly fashion. As a result of this, 42 out of 100 fashion brands disclosed their supplier’s information in 2017.

You must be thinking, why do we need to go vegan in fashion? The leather which you adore is actually made by skins of cows, pigs, goats, sheep alligators, ostriches, kangaroos, even dogs and cats too and fur is made by killing rabbits, foxes, goats and angora rabbits. This is one of the reasons that designers are supporting sustainable fashion in a manner that it doesn’t harm animals or environment.

They are coming with alternatives for everything like using ‘Ahimsa Silk’ (also called fabric of peace) which can be made without killing silkworms, whereas vegan leather is made from PVC plastic, recycled leather, second-hand leather can replace animal leathers. Wool is also being recreated by brands that use non-muleses wool, second-hand wool, organic cotton, bamboo hemp etc.

PETA has come up with bio-fabricated leather that can be grown in labs and will be coming soon in stores. Artificial leather is also being created using mushrooms, fruits, nylons and plants. Brands are using cloth from sustainable cotton, hemp, bamboos, fibre crops. The wide range of clothing, textiles and dyes are all going natural. Designers in India have also launched an organic line made with vegetable dyes and vegan clothing and accessories. International brands like Stella Mccartney, H&M, Armani, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Zara and many more are cruelty-free and Indian designers and brands like Anita Dongre, Pero, Manish Malhotra, Adidas etc. are sustainable too.

Now the question is, how can you be so sure about the sustainability of materials? A simple way is by looking for a cruelty-free and vegan logo on the label.

Celebrities like John Abraham, Jacqueline Fernandez, Shahid Kapoor and Emma Watson have been supporting cruelty-free and sustainable lifestyles.

We usually don’t realize that everything we buy and use impacts the earth, so it is important for us to become competent shoppers who buy high quality, animal-friendly fashion. Every responsible citizen must go for compassionate consumption, a buying practice that involves the consumer paying attention to the origin of the product. “Vegan is the new Vogue.”