LONDON – Fast fashion brands have been in the spotlight over recent weeks after tweets circulating online drew widespread attention to website disclaimers that products containing certain chemicals can cause cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm.
It’s a legal requirement for brands with more than 10 employees selling stock in the state of California to crosscheck with the Proposition 65 list of chemicals to ensure consumers have ‘clear and reasonable warnings’ of possible ramifications.
“This warning is often in the form of a label on the product or its packaging,” Fashion Revolution’s policy and research coordinator, Sienna Somers, says. “The label only tells you that a product has a chemical that might cause cancer or affect reproduction but it doesn’t have to list every dangerous chemical or even let you know what level of risk you are at.”
It has, as such, called into question broader legislation on the matter and whether it goes far enough. “It isn’t perfect,” Somers insists.
