Asda and its fashion fascia George have made a pledge to combat the use of microplastics in their clothing ranges, marking the retailer’s latest effort in the war on plastic.
The Walmart-owned brands joined the European Outdoor Group’s Microfibre Consortium to understand and reduce the impact of microfibres in clothing, which can find their way into the ocean and eventually poison the food chain.
The pledge is significant because while Asda is traditionally a grocer, due to George it is the second biggest clothing retailer by volume in the UK.
It comes after Asda earlier this year made a commitment to reduce its use of plastic across its business as part of its Plastic Unwrapped strategy.
So far, the Big 4 retailer said it has removed 2500 tonnes from its own-brand packaging.
“Asda has been working to reduce the impact its products have on the environment for many years, such as voluntarily banning microbeads from our products and helping our suppliers reduce their carbon footprint through our Sustain and Save Exchange,” Asda sustainability manager Laura Babbs said.
“The microfibre issue is complex and currently lacks a comprehensive research base, so it’s the right thing to do to work with other companies and share best practice that will allow us to make an industry-wide impact.”
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