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By Jack Graham [[link removed]] | Deputy Editor, Funded Projects

Christmas shopping

With Black Friday in the rear-view mirror and Christmas just a couple of weeks away, many of us will be searching for clothes online and in stores.

But what's on offer in those stores changes at an alarming rate. Fashion is fast.

A new documentary by Context today reveals exclusively that Zara's parent company Inditex has dramatically increased its shipping of goods by air [[link removed]], which lead to as much as 35 times more CO2 emissions.

Our team spent months sifting through supply chain data and speaking with owners of garment factories and their workers in Bangladesh.

Garment workers in a factory in Bangladesh. Thomson Reuters Foundation/Albert Han

Clothes are often designed just a few weeks before reaching the shelves. In an apparent effort to get them there as fast as possible, Inditex - the parent company to Zara – has shifted towards shipping by air.

So far this year, the company transported a quarter of its clothes produced in Bangladesh by air, a 26% increase compared to 2023 in terms of value.

"They built a business model and a logistic model that is really addicted to speed," said David Hachfeld, a researcher at Public Eye, a Swiss NGO focused on sustainability issues.

A spokesperson for Inditex said sea and road transport were by far the most significant methods of transport used by the company, but additional modes of transport were used in "exceptional circumstances". They added the company is working to reduce emissions such as by using sustainable fuels.

Graph showing Inditex cargo shipments to India from Bangladesh. Thomson Reuters Foundation/Albert Han

Slowing fashion down

Air shipping isn't just bad for the environment.

Abdullah Hil Rakib, Senior Vice President of the Bangladesh Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said air shipping "creates a lot of additional cost" for factory owners who often have to foot the bill.

And this fast shipping puts even more pressure on garment workers in Bangladesh to produce clothes to extremely tight deadlines.

Context identified one Bangladesh-based supplier Nipa Group that produces clothes for several brands, including Inditex’s Lefties and Bershka. These two brands accounted for nearly 80% of the supplier’s air-shipping so far in 2024.

"They make us work overtime, normally on a daily basis, but they do not give us wages for overtime," said a worker at the Nipa Group factory, on condition of anonymity.

She spoke to Context after an 11-hour shift as a seamstress. She was only paid for eight. The Nipa Group denied that workers had any wage issues.

With a significant, growing impact on the global climate, and a major toll taken on local workers, what will it take for the fashion industry to slow down?

See you next week,

Jack

This week's top picks Fast fashion giant Inditex wants to be sustainable. But is it? [[link removed]]

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Brazil's Indigenous granted farm funds but risk of eviction looms [[link removed]]

President Lula is helping Indigenous communities sell food to the government, but a backlash from Congress puts them at risk of eviction

Biden makes last dash to Africa, showing the power of minerals [[link removed]]

Biden's visit to Angola highlights a world hungry for Africa's natural resources...and a big fight to come

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