Eco-score for clothing: French brands report limited consumer awareness and understanding

Paris - The environmental cost of clothing is still of little interest to consumers, according to an initial assessment by brands on Monday. This comes eight months after the eco-score came into effect in France.

Since October 1, brands have been able to voluntarily implement this eco-score. A label displays the "environmental cost" of a textile. The higher the score in "impact points", the less sustainable it is. Therefore, the objective for brands is to achieve the lowest possible score.

The eco-score is calculated based on water consumption; greenhouse gas emissions; toxicity; recycling or repair possibilities; the volume of microplastic fibres released during washing; and a "fast fashion coefficient" that considers production volumes.

This week, the milestone of 100 brands using this label "will be passed", according to the Ministry of Ecological Transition, which gathered industry stakeholders on Monday. "We wanted to show that we could have low prices and be exemplary from an environmental standpoint," stated Camille Caron, head of CSR at Kiabi.

Lack of customer interest and clarity highlighted

According to initial feedback on Monday, consumers are paying very little attention to the eco-score. "For now, customers are not interested, despite the physical display in stores," testified Clémence Berlier, head of CSR at menswear brand Jules. The sentiment is similar at SMCP (Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot and Fursac), where "the primary criterion for customers remains desirability," advanced Damien Pelle, the group's head of sustainability.

There is no reason to be alarmed, however, noted Bertrand Swiderski, CSR director at Carrefour. "It took people several years to adopt the Nutriscore," he remarked.

Some brands note that consumers find the indicator difficult to understand. "For those who are interested, it is not clear enough," testified Berlier. The displayed eco-score figure "is not very legible," confirmed Pauline Greneche, CSR project manager at Leclerc, a retailer that has used the system since February.

A 'titanic task' for brands ahead of European harmonisation

Collecting data for 400 of the group's products represents a "titanic task", particularly in "identifying all suppliers," she added. These reasons prompted Camille Caron of Kiabi to call for "more experimentation before regulating this score".

The system, planned in the Climate and Resilience Act (2021), was set to become mandatory in 2024. It is ultimately only voluntary to allow the European Union to complete its work on developing a future mandatory environmental label.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

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