Fashion suppliers want brands to help with EU green regulations

As the global fashion industry prepares for new green supply-chain regulations, clothing manufacturers in low-income countries like Bangladesh are looking to major international brands to share the responsibility. The European Union's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), adopted in July, mandates that corporations enhance the sustainability of their global value chains.
These new rules, which focus on workers' rights and emissions, have the potential to reshape garment production and sales, particularly in the factories and textile mills across Asia that contribute significantly to environmental pollution. Bangladesh, the world's second-largest clothing exporter after China, urgently needs support from major brands as it navigates a political transition following widespread protests over a jobs crisis that led to the previous government's ousting.

Abdullah Hil Rakib, managing director of Team Group, a Bangladesh-based clothing supplier employing around 23,000 people, stated, “We are mentally and operationally prepared for the change, but we will require support from our global buyers and government to achieve our green transition goals.” The CSDDD aims to align corporate practices with the Paris Agreement on climate goals, obliging major European brands to ensure their suppliers conduct due diligence to protect workers and communities from negative impacts or face compensation for damages.
Experts emphasize that the responsibility will largely rest on factories in countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Cambodia to address labor, human rights, and environmental issues. The new regulations may empower suppliers to advocate for ethical business practices and better contracts with international brands, according to representatives from the study who spoke to the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
However, manufacturers are still figuring out the specific measures they need to implement and how to finance their share of the estimated $1 trillion needed for the fashion industry to achieve net-zero emissions over the coming decades. Mr. Rakib estimates that suppliers may need to invest an additional 20% to 30% to green their factories.
Industry experts caution that the CSDDD will necessitate extensive legal reforms in the countries where products are made. National governments will need to enact laws that align with the EU directive, brands must develop strategies for compliance, and courts will require precedents to enforce these laws, noted Matin Saad Abdullah, a professor of computer science and engineering at BRAC University in Dhaka. “The path ahead is long and complex,” he said.