Could Faux Fur Be Damaging our Environment?
Here at Wildash London we’re big fans of natural products, in fact, you won't see anything faux from us anywhere. However, we understand that a lot of people consider real fur and animal products to be unethical and unsustainable for the environment, but with fur products back in vogue is faux really the best way to go?
Purchasing real fur products has become a taboo in recent years. Admitting to owning a real fur coat or a sheepskin rug can earn you disapproving looks or even unwanted lectures. Of course, for some people, using real animal products will always be against their ethics and beliefs. This is a decision that must be respected, but it’s also important to consider some important facts about the process of making faux fur.
Faux fur is made from products that are not sustainable or renewable, such as nylon, acrylic, and polyester. These materials are also petroleum based, with reports stating it can take a gallon of oil to make just three faux fur jackets. Once the garments are made, they are then treated with chemicals to give them a more authentic look. These are practises which are not doing our environment much good in the long run, with the process using up to three times more non-renewable energy than making real fur products.
In addition, when consumers decide to get rid of their faux fur products, there is the issue of how they are disposed of. Many faux fur products are in danger of languishing in landfills after just one season of use, and, like petroleum based plastic bags, can take hundreds of years to decompose. Real fur, however, is much more biodegradable, and can even be composted in your own garden within the year.
The media buzz surrounding fake fur goes some way to explaining the general public’s distaste for real fur, but the pendulum seems to be swinging back in favour of real fur – with several celebrities, including Beyoncé, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Kate Middleton, seen out and about wearing real fur clothes. Re-education may be the key to re-framing people’s mindset about faux fur over the real deal.
At Wildash London, we are not advocates of "fur for the sake of fur" and all our products are developed from sheepskin, which is a natural by-product of the food industry.
We are advocates of careful environmental consideration and sustainability is hugely important to us. In a world that has become massively wasteful and throwaway, always yearning for the next new fashion fix and the next new buy, we feel that it is important to slow down and really take a long look at what you're really buying into, so to speak.
All our products are designed for longevity. This combined with its natural provenance, means that our sheepskin products are environmentally sound compared to their faux counterparts.
There will likely never be agreement between the pro-faux and real fur camps, but here at Wildash London we’re dedicated to always giving you well-made, natural, 100% British and European products for your home, and now even your wardrobe. You can view our full range of shearling and sheepskin products in our store.
For some further reading on the impact of fast fashion and faux fur, check out this great article about fast fashion on the Animal Activist Watch website