More than half of global viscose supply scores well in Canopy report
Canadian environmental group Canopy, which campaigns to eliminate viscose sourced from endangered forests from apparel supply chains, has published its 2020 ranking of fibre producers.
Called the Hot Button report, Canopy uses the exercise to rank viscose suppliers by assessing their willingness to welcome third-party audits, contribute to conservation projects, invest in new products and adopt good sourcing policies with transparency, traceability and sustainability at the forefront. It also takes into account their chemical use and emissions.
In the 2020 report, Canopy ranks more than 30 suppliers of viscose. It has calculated that 320 global brands are seeking to source from the most responsible producers and that these brands have combined annual revenues of $578 billion.
It concludes in the 2020 report that more than 50% of the global viscose supply by volume qualifies for ‘green shirt’ status, the label it applies to companies that come out of its assessment well.
Its top five are, in order, Aditya Birla, Lenzing, Eastman Chemical Company, ENKA and Kelheim Fibres.
Aditya Birla said that coming top in the ranking reflected its “relentless attempts to improve”.
Photo credit: Lenzing
