The wool sweater, or the most polluting garment in your wardrobe

In your opinion: which of your synthetic or merino wool sweaters has the greatest environmental impact? You will probably be surprised to learn that wool production actually emits far more greenhouse gas emissions than many man-made fibers from petrochemicals. How the hell is that possible? Atelier Unes invites you to discover the dark undersides of your wool sweaters.

Wool: one of the most polluting materials in the world

You read that right. Although sheep fur is a natural material, and even biodegradable, the Global Fashion Agenda report highlighted a sad fact in its “Pulse of the Fashion Industry.” The production of sheep's wool is one of the 5 most polluting materials to manufacture in the world.

Sheep: a major producer of methane

As big eaters, sheep produce a large quantity of gas during their digestion. Gases that they inevitably expel. The problem is that in doing so, the animal releases nearly 30 liters of methane into the atmosphere per day. As an indication, each year, more than 1 billion sheep produce 2 million tons of wool. We let you do the math...

Although present naturally in the environment, this highly flammable hydrocarbon plays a major role in global warming. In fact, compared to carbon dioxide, methane has an impact 28 times greater than CO₂ on global warming. Moreover, in New Zealand – one of the largest wool producers in the world – more than 90% of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions are due to sheep farming alone. Not to mention their droppings. Farm animal manure contributes not only to air pollution, but also to land and water pollution.

Have you ever heard of water eutrophication? This phenomenon occurs in particular when organic waste is dumped into waterways. Highly concentrated in nitrogen and phosphorus, the droppings of ovidae cause imbalances in aquatic systems. They lead to the excessive growth of certain plants which, in the long term, suffocates the fauna by reducing the level of oxygen. This is how more and more “dead zones” also called “anoxic waters” are born across the globe.

Livestock farming and deforestation

In the end, all this only goes to show the disastrous impact of factory farming on the environment. A sector that represents as many greenhouse gas emissions as the transport sector, as Greenpeace points out. A sector which also happens to be responsible for major deforestation, particularly in England and Wales, as the author and journalist George Monbiot pointed out following the investigation by the Environmental Audit Committee of the House of municipalities.

For pasture needs, the land is cleared, the trees are cut down. Heavily wooded in the past, the highlands are now devoid of any vegetation, reducing biodiversity. Being present in too large quantities on the hills, the sheep simply prevent the forests from regenerating naturally. The ecology expert also states that “sheep are a fully automated system for the destruction of the environment”.

In addition to the depletion of wildlife, this deforestation also leads to an increase in soil salinity as well as erosion.

The use of toxic chemicals

This is still only the tip of the iceberg. Indeed, these are mixed with pesticides and insecticides. Subject to many parasites, the sheep undergo, among other things, treatments using toxic chemical substances. Moreover, these are not the only abuses that these poor animals endure. These practices are responsible for health problems among breeders, but also among consumers!

Then, after shearing, the wool still needs to be cleaned. For once, we use chemicals that end up in waterways. A process that involves so much pollution that even the largest wool producers prefer to send their raw material to Asia to be washed.

Does ethical wool exist?

After focusing on the tights industry, the collaborative French brand Atelier Unes decided to tackle the wool industry. How to design a very soft sweater, which keeps warm, breathes and whose environmental impact approaches 0?

Well, with more than 2 million tons of wool produced per year, the textile industry has enough fibers to dress the whole planet for winter. Just use the magic of recycling. Zero waste, recycled wool allows both to take advantage of all the advantages of its fiber, but also and above all to put an end to this ultra-polluting industry.

Despite everything, wool has been used since the dawn of time to keep us warm. It must be said that the coat, and more particularly merino wool, has non-negligible qualities. She is :

What's more, even as it degrades in nature, it continues to provide the soil with these nutrients, such as keratin, which makes up a large part of it.

Especially since recycling wool is child's play. Thanks to an entirely mechanical process that consumes very little energy and water, recycled wool proves to be the ultimate solution to continue enjoying its benefits.

How does it work? Used clothes are first sorted by color and then shredded. The fibers are again mixed together to obtain new colors. Then they are spun and woven like any other fiber.

A 100% recycled feminine sweater

In this case, Atelier Unes has set its sights on 285 grams of “double-twisted” recycled materials for even more warmth. Co-created with 5,426 people, the sweater is made from 70% merino wool and 30% recycled polyamide. But we won't tell you more. Instead, we let you come and discover their product: the Azalée sweater.