By Francisca Vargas Ramos
In recent years, secondhand or "vintage" clothing has become one of the most popular choices for many. For a while, I thought it was the lesser evil compared to everything brought on by the fast fashion phenomenon and the excessive production of clothing that many retail brands have recently embraced. However, it turns out that it is not the lesser evil.
You've probably heard that Chile is one of the countries that consumes the most clothing per capita. According to the Parliamentary Technical Advisory Committee, conducted this year by Sofia Calvo and Guido Williams at the National Congressional Library, clothing purchases have increased by 233% in the last 20 years. Furthermore, according to Euromonitor, of all the clothing purchased by Chileans, only 8% is made in Chile.
More and more people are buying used or secondhand clothing, and in recent years, its growth has been explosive, as a trend toward environmental awareness has emerged. The textile industry is one of the most polluting, and in the face of the climate emergency, it has become even more important to find ways to mitigate all the damage it has caused. Recycling and upcycling are two ways to be more responsible as consumers. However, some analyses could shed light on where we as a country could do more.
According to figures released by the Central Bank this year, 736,183 tons of clothing were imported in 2021. This figure calls into question the irregularity of textile imports arriving at the port of Iquique throughout the year, where bales of clothing weighing 45, 40, 23, and 20 kilos are received from Europe, the United States, Korea, and Japan.
According to the digital media outlet Quinta Trends, sources in the Tarapacá Region indicated that 70% of imported used clothing was discarded, which has led to the creation of illegal dumps in the desert, particularly in the Alto Hospicio commune, which many have dubbed the "Dressed Desert" and which has been addressed in more than one report in the national media.
While the increase in clothing and footwear consumption in our country in 2021 is attributed to GDP growth, as consumers are able to access cheaper clothing, secondhand clothing seemed even more tempting. Furthermore, we can't deny that many of us have found a wardrobe "gem" more than once, which we take care of every day as best we can.
Unfortunately, in our country, there is an excessive amount of secondhand clothing, and more and more arrive every month. These are bales and bales of clothing that we wouldn't be able to finish, and only a portion of which is ultimately sold and used by us.
There is still no law regulating the number of tons arriving at the national port each month. However, used clothing entering our country is monitored for proper sanitization, and this process is certified by the exporting country, specifying the sanitary process it underwent before shipment. This helps prevent the spread of disease.
Furthermore, the article published by the National Library of Congress notes that "the Ministry of the Environment is supporting the creation of a Clean Production Agreement (CPA) in the textile sector for pre- and post-consumer waste, with a view to its incorporation as a priority product under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law."
Countries such as Peru, Bolivia, and the Dominican Republic have banned the import of clothing. Meanwhile, countries such as France and the European Union have opted for measures that support extended producer responsibility in the textile sector, that is, responsible use of textile waste, clothing, footwear, etc., thus promoting the strategy of circularity and sustainability in fashion, actions that would be important to repeat in our country.
But while some public policy projects aimed at improving the national textile industry begin to be discussed and implemented, we as consumers can take some action on the matter. An example of this would be having a capsule closet to avoid excessive and compulsive shopping. Especially in this era of fast fashion, where Shein was recently denounced again for perpetuating terrible working conditions for its workers in exchange for massive profits by creating new collections every week.
Although the discussion has much more to offer, it is necessary See the glass half full. And at Vístete Local, we'll tell you—if you didn't already know—that in Chile, we can find organizations like Eco Fiber Chile , which, based on the problem of textile landfills in the north, created an innovative initiative to transform this waste into thermal insulation for home construction.