What: France has established sustainability legislation that calls for more transparency and traceability in the fashion industry.

Why it is important: The new rules are a sign of what is to come for the industry and a step in the right direction as consumers want to know what they are buying and want authentic brands.

Several new pieces of sustainable fashion legislation will curb greenwashing and cut pre- and post -consumer waste as new French laws are put into place. With deadlines fast approaching for the EU’s climate targets, France’s focus on the fashion industry is a move in the right direction as overproduction sits at 30-40%.

As the biggest plastic polluter in the Mediterranean region, France has implemented laws with a focus on waste. The most notable of these forbidding the destruction of unsold goods and retailers providing consumers with information about the environmental impact of products.

Brands will face challenges, especially with traceability as pinning down where raw materials and fabrics were made, how they were made and in what conditions is an exhaustive and ongoing process. Additionally, this legislation will push the industry towards becoming more digital. Although experts state fashion lacks digital infrastructure, brands should embrace digital product passports to capture all the information needed for product labels.

While brands affected by the French legislation will have a head start, others across the EU will soon be seeing similar laws by 2024.

France has laid down the law on sustainability