Should QR codes replace clothing labels?

The latest instalment of the Ecotextile Talks podcast series explores the motivations behind a campaign calling on the fashion industry to move away from conventional care and content labels in favour of digital alternatives. 

Steve Lamar, president and CEO of the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA), who is one of the most prominent industry voices behind the #CutTheTape campaign, sits down with Tom Bithell to share his views on why digital solutions such as QR codes ought to be implemented as soon as possible.

The current “extraordinary” situation cannot be perpetuated, he asserts, with enough label tape being produced annually by the apparel sector to “stretch from here from Earth to the moon and back 12 times”.

This, the AAFA boss states, makes labels themselves – regardless of the garment they are affixed to – a “sustainability burden”.

While material usage is a key tenet of the campaign’s case, during this episode Lamar is also pressed on issues such as who would be responsible for the publication and management of garment care and content data as well as the ethics of leaving some consumers at the mercy of the ‘digital divide’ – affecting those members of society without the means or knowhow to access information online.

This topic, along with many others, is also the subject of our news videos available via both the Ecotextile Views homepage and @ecotextileviews YouTube channel.