In a bid to steer parents towards their stores for next year’s school uniforms, Marks & Spencer and BHS have come over all green, introducing a range of schoolwear produced from recycled plastic bottles. You would never guess that they were once lumps of plastic and allegedly they won’t melt under an iron. Ooh er missus!
The M&S range was produced in Taiwan, from locally sourced bottles and there will also be some Fairtrade cotton shirts for girls and boys aged between three and 16. This range will be on sale from August in 20 stores around the country.
The BHS range has been crafted from bottles gathered in Europe and it apparently took 10 bottles to make its “greenfleece.”
I am never too sure how much these sorts of endeavours are down to genuine concern on behalf of the companies and how much of it is just a marketing ploy, to reel in consumers. Both BHS and M&S have come under criticism at various points in time from Labour Behind the Label, due to the poor working conditions, low pay and lack of health and safety provisions for factory workers, as well as a lack of transparency.
Whilst I wholeheartedly welcome the move towards ethical and recycled fashion, I am a sceptic at heart and I just hope that companies like BHS and M&S are doing more than making token gestures.
My concern with the recycled schoolwear that M & S & BHS are intending to launch is the health aspect. I am very much for recycling; however, is there not a danger that potentially dangerous chemicals used in plastic (UPVC) manufacture recycled into a material that our childern are encouraged to wear, could have serious implications on their health. There is no "cure" for cancer - are these items of clothing completely safe to wear?