The low-carbon transformation of the textile industry accelerates, and 23 brand companies including Anta and Bosideng have joined the 30.60 carbon neutrality plan
On May 30, at the 2024 Climate Innovation Fashion Summit hosted by the China Textile Industry Federation, two well-known domestic clothing brands, Anta Sports and Bosideng, officially joined the fashion climate innovation 30.60 carbon neutrality acceleration plan. So far, a total of 23 brand companies and 42 manufacturing companies have joined this goal of jointly promoting the "double carbon" action in the textile industry.
As an important area for promoting carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, China's textile and garment industry has always been an active force in global sustainable governance. Since the China Textile Industry Federation launched the "China Fashion Brand Climate Innovation Carbon Neutralization Acceleration Plan" in June 2021, in the past three years, outstanding companies have emerged in the industry, making commitments to mitigate climate change, and carrying out a series of climate innovation actions, demonstrating the company's determination and efforts to independently promote the "double carbon" work.
The vast majority of companies have set climate goals
According to Yan Yanshang, vice president of the China Textile Industry Federation and director of the Social Responsibility Office, through a comprehensive analysis and evaluation of the manufacturing and brand companies that joined, it was found that the vast majority (83%) of the companies have set climate goals, and more than 50% of the companies use the "double carbon" goal as the most important form. Among the companies that have set "double carbon" goals, 62% of the corporate goals will peak earlier than the national goals by 2030, and 82% of the corporate goals will achieve neutrality earlier than the national goals by 2060. In addition to the "double carbon" goals, more companies have also set other diversified climate goals, such as absolute emission reduction goals, intensity emission reduction goals, and renewable energy goals, all of which are demonstrating the climate ambitions of industry companies in a quantitative manner.
According to the "Fashion Climate Innovation 3060 Carbon Neutralization Acceleration Plan Enterprise Progress Manual" released at the meeting, the use of green electricity has become an important starting point for leading enterprises to reduce emissions. Statistics show that the proportion of enterprises carrying out emission reduction projects within their own operating scope will increase from 41% in 2020 to 71% in 2022. In 2022, the total emission reduction will reach 200,000 tons, a year-on-year increase of 163%. Among the various types of emission reduction projects, renewable energy power (the vast majority of rooftop distributed photovoltaic projects) and equipment energy conservation are the most common. The use of renewable energy electricity has shown significant growth. In 2022, the proportion of green electricity use in the company's total electricity consumption will increase from 1% in 2018 to 8%.
Guangzhou Qianjin Denim Co., Ltd. is one of the earliest denim producers in China and one of the first companies to join the fashion and climate innovation 30.60 carbon neutrality acceleration plan. According to the person in charge of the company, between 2021 and 2022, the company has established two photovoltaic projects, with an annual power generation capacity of 1.84 million kilowatt-hours, accounting for 11% of the company's total electricity consumption, helping the company gradually realize green power transformation.
The need for terminal brands to trace the carbon footprint throughout the product life cycle is becoming increasingly urgent
"At present, textile companies have not yet completely got rid of the current situation of high energy consumption and high emissions. In order to reduce carbon emissions in the textile industry, we should start from four aspects: textile fiber raw materials, distribution and consumption processes, production and processing processes, and waste textile disposal." Xu Weilin, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of Wuhan Textile University, said.
According to him, taking textile fiber raw materials as an example, the cultivation of natural fibers and the synthesis and processing of chemical fibers will directly or indirectly produce greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide. During the production and processing process, spinning, weaving, printing and dyeing, garments, and finishing involve equipment energy consumption, material treatment, waste emissions, etc., and will also generate carbon emissions. In addition, carbon dioxide emissions are also generated during the use and disposal processes.
At a regular press conference held by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment on May 29, the relevant person in charge of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment stated that the Ministry of Ecology and Environment is preparing the "Implementation Plan on Establishing a Carbon Footprint Management System", which is scheduled to be issued in the near future. The "Plan" will start from the carbon footprint of products, improve domestic rules, promote international connectivity, and establish a unified and standardized carbon footprint management system.
Carbon footprint usually refers to the sum of greenhouse gas emissions and removals of a specific object expressed in carbon dioxide equivalent. Product carbon footprint refers to the entire life cycle of a product, including the sum of carbon emissions generated from the production, transportation, distribution, use to disposal of raw materials.
"Currently, we are the first to complete the carbon footprint evaluation of 110 single items in the textile industry of all countries in the world. These evaluations come from 33 brands and involve nearly 180 manufacturing companies." Yan Yan said that at present, the demand for terminal brands for the full life cycle traceability of carbon footprint products is becoming increasingly urgent to promote the improvement and optimization of upstream and downstream energy consumption and carbon emission management capabilities in the supply chain.
At the meeting, many brand companies stated that the energy consumption and carbon emissions generated by suppliers 'production activities are closely related to the carbon emission level of brand companies. When most of the production links of products are undertaken by suppliers, how to reduce suppliers 'energy use and carbon emissions while ensuring product output and quality has become an important part of their efforts to achieve their own climate goals.
Taking Li Ning Sporting Goods Co., Ltd. as an example, as of 2022, Li Ning has completed a total of 28 supplier carbon inventory projects to help them build energy and carbon emission management capabilities. From 2020 to 2022, the carbon emissions per thousand yuan of Li Ning's garment materials purchased will continue to decrease, from 1.35 tons of carbon dioxide/thousand yuan in 2022 to 0.87 tons of carbon dioxide/thousand yuan in 2022.
Climate innovation is a long-term undertaking and systematic project that requires joint efforts
“Low-carbon and green transformation of the industry is not a single breakthrough, but a joint effort of multiple stakeholders. A more transparent supply chain and a more diverse cross-border innovation body are taking shape. Covering the entire chain and the entire life cycle, the construction of more intensive input-output relationships is accelerated." Sun Ruizhe, president of the China Textile Industry Federation, said that climate innovation is a long-term undertaking and systematic project that requires our joint efforts. At present, there is still an imbalance and insufficient supply of green products. The market space for low-carbon green products is huge, and those who hold the "overcapacity theory" do not look global and do not see development. Only adequate supply upgrading and global market cooperation are the right way to achieve green development.
He suggested that the low-carbon transformation of green design, green materials, green manufacturing, green consumption and other products throughout the life cycle should be strengthened to reduce the carbon footprint of all links in the industrial chain. Strengthen standard guidance and continue to improve carbon footprint management standards and methods in sub-areas. Accelerate the improvement of the industry's green and low-carbon service platform and guide and standardize low-carbon practices in the industry. At the same time, improve green value-added capabilities. Continue to improve the industry ESG information disclosure system, ESG performance evaluation system and ESG capability improvement system. Make full use of green financing channels to enhance green financing capabilities. Comply with the new mechanism of the carbon trading market, lay out in advance, and establish and optimize the corporate green asset management system.
At the meeting, Lu Xinming, deputy director of the Climate Change Response Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, pointed out that it is of great significance for my country's textile industry to actively promote green ecology and high-quality development around the new positioning of "green, technology and fashion".
In this regard, he also put forward three suggestions: First, vigorously promote the green and low-carbon development of the textile industry. Green and low-carbon development is the direction of today's scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation. It is the most promising development area and will provide strong green development momentum for high-quality development. It is necessary to vigorously promote the high-end, intelligent and greenness of the textile industry, while promoting the transformation and application of major low-carbon technologies, processes and equipment, and promoting carbon reduction and carbon reduction in the textile industry through technological process innovation and production process reengineering. The second is to build a green and low-carbon supply chain. Support leading enterprises in the textile industry to play a leading role in key areas such as supply chain integration and innovative and low-carbon management, integrate green and low-carbon concepts into the entire process of product design, raw material procurement, production, transportation, storage, use, and recycling, and accelerate Promote the construction of a unified green product certification and labeling system, and promote green and low-carbon development throughout the supply chain. The third is to promote green and low-carbon technological innovation. It is necessary to promote technological progress in the textile field, increase the research and development and promotion of green and low-carbon technologies, improve relevant systems and mechanisms, promptly deploy green and low-carbon frontiers and key technology research, promote major breakthroughs in green and low-carbon technologies, and empower green with digital intelligence.
