Fashion brands driving demand for green shipping fuels, industry giant says
- Retailers that ship huge volumes of clothes from countries such as China, Vietnam and Bangladesh, causing CO2 emissions, are feeling the pressure from consumers
- The textile industry is estimated to be responsible for between 2 per cent and 8 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, a UN environment report shows
Fashion brands are a key driver of demand for green shipping fuels, according to shipping group Maersk, as the sector faces pressure from consumers and regulators to reduce their climate footprint.
Retailers ship huge volumes of clothes from production centres in countries such as China, Vietnam and Bangladesh to consumers around the world, causing carbon dioxide emissions.
Overall, the textile industry is estimated to be responsible for between 2 per cent and 8 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a United Nations Environment Programme report published last month.
The shipping industry, which itself aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, has begun offering low-emission fuels such as biofuels made from cooking oil and food waste or methanol produced from renewable energy as an alternative to fuel oil.
The fashion industry accounted for 26 per cent of the more than 240,000 containers that Maersk shipped last year using biofuels under its ECO Delivery contracts, making it the biggest sector using the low-emission fuel service, the company said.
