Cascale

China’s textiles and apparel sector stands at a crossroads of sustainability, competitiveness, and workforce responsibility. With decarbonisation targets, rising labour costs, and export diversification, the industry faces profound transformation. Policies under the 14th Five-Year Plan and “dual carbon” strategy will determine how the sector adapts to shifting global sourcing and compliance landscapes.

Cascale and Worldly have developed a standardised methodology for apparel and footwear companies using the Higg MSI to calculate FLAG emissions. The method separates FLAG from aggregated GHG data, integrates land use change figures, and applies base and conservative assumptions. It delivers consistent baselines, enabling compliance with Science-Based Targets initiative requirements and alignment with forthcoming GHG Protocol FLAG reporting guidance.

Although apparel and footwear exports account for approximately 15% of Viet Nam’s GDP, this sector faces critical sustainability challenges, particularly in energy consumption, carbon emissions, and resource efficiency, says a new report.

Cascale has updated the Higg Brand and Retail Module (Higg BRM), advancing alignment with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) to now cover up to 78% of ESRS content.

Global nonprofit Cascale has published its first Better Buying Partnership Index since it acquired key assets of the Better Buying Institute (BBI) earlier this month.

In a multi-stakeholder initiative, Open Supply Hub is adding four more leading members to its platform — Cascale, Ethical Trading Initiative, Ethical Supply Chain Program, and Ethical Tea Partnership — which will result in tens of thousands of suppliers across various sectors being shared on OS Hub's open data platform, which maps supply chain production locations globally.

A report by Transformers Foundation reveals that some of the industry's most influential multi stakeholder initiatives or MSIs often reinforce systemic barriers that limit supplier participation, leading to a cycle of distrust, disengagement, and ineffective sustainability strategies.