Swedish retailer H&M has released its latest “Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2014,” which underlines the company’s commitment toward reducing carbon footprint, while going green. The 13th annual report highlights successful initiatives implemented by the company over the last year which include use of only renewable energy and increasing the number of products made from recycled materials.

According to the recent research paper by Textile Exchange, ‘Organic Cotton Market Report 2013’, H&M continues to be the world’s No. 1 user of organic cotton. In addition, 7,684 tons of used garments have been collected for reuse or recycling since its in-store program kicked off in 2013 that’s as much fabric as what’s in more than 38 million T-shirts and in 2014, the retailer released its first closed-loop products made with 20 per cent recycled cotton. The goal now is to collect 100,000 tons of used garments by 2020.

The company also made use of around 40 million PET bottles to make recycled polyester, 24.6 per cent of the retailer’s shoes are now made with mainly water-based glues and it pledges to use only certified down from this year onward, as well as only 100 per cent certified wool from 2017. The company also unveiled its debut ‘Conscious Denim’ collection, which on average used 56 per cent less water and 58 per cent less energy during the production process. It has also decided to include second-tier fabric and yarn suppliers involved in making about 35 per cent of its products, in public supplier factory list.

Keeping the situation in Bangladesh in sight, the company apart from monitoring factory compliance, has collaborated with the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Fair Labor Assocation (FLA) to promote industrial relations and social dialog between its suppliers and their workers.

www.hm.com