Fashion and recycling industries around the globe join forces to demand unified digital labeling (QR Codes) to advance a circular economy. The Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART) joins 130 recycling, fashion, and footwear organizations around the globe in demanding legislative entities modernize textile labeling requirements. The move would advance sustainability, circularity, and authenticity solutions in the fashion and textile recycling industries. #CutTheTape benefits consumers by providing more product information using digital means.
THE PROBLEM: Each year, the annual production of label tape produces approximately 5.7 million miles (about 9.2m km) of tape, which is long enough to stretch from the earth to the moon and back twelve times. Labeling requirements have not been updated since the 1960s. Current outdated labeling requirements are inconsistent and hinder efforts to trace the origins of materials to be more sustainable and support a circular economy.
THE SOLUTION: digital technology solutions – such as QR code labels – would reduce labeling waste and eliminate at least 343,000 MT of emissions from industry supply chains while providing consumers with more detailed and accurate product information. The data would also aid in the garment’s lifecycle, by providing details about resale, repair, rental, upcycling, or recycling. We urge the United States Federal Trade Commission and other entities worldwide to use digital means to standardize labeling requirements.
ACTION NEEDED: We urge government regulators to amend international, national, and local regulations to allow fully digital labeling solutions to be adopted. QR codes would make products more useful and valuable for longer periods in the circular economy while unlocking new opportunities for resale, repair, rental, upcycling, or recycling.
SMART President Steve Rees explained, “Greener e-labeling clears the way for transparency and accountability in the global textile recycling space. QR codes will empower consumers by providing more accessible information and key data that can strategically extend a garment's or item's lifecycle as it moves through the resilient reuse and recycle distribution chain.”
SMART calls on legislative leaders to take immediate action to create stringent digital labeling guidelines, which will lead to more responsible outcomes, helping the world economy and the environment. Please join our global effort and #CutTheTape.
About SMART: Established in 1932, the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART) is an international nonprofit trade association that strengthens the economic opportunities of its diverse membership by promoting the interdependence of the for-profit textile recycling industry segments and providing a common forum for networking, education, and trade. SMART members use and convert recycled and secondary materials from used clothing, commercial laundries and non-woven, off spec material, new mill ends, and paper worldwide. SMART member companies create thousands of jobs worldwide, proving that you can make money by being socially responsible each day.
