PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
In 2019 the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) was awarded by DG Environment the facilitation of the PEFCR (Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules) for Apparel & Footwear (A&F). The Technical Secretariat is charged with developing a methodology to evaluate and benchmark the environmental performance of products in the textile and footwear sector, one of the most impactful sectors identified by the Commission. The PEFCR will be an Intellectual Property free methodology available for anybody who wants to calculate the footprint of their product. This is a widespread process, with a budget of more than 1 500 000 EUR, with 13 financial contributors (Refashion, ADEME, Nike, VFC, C&A, Cotton Incorporated, H&M, Inditex, IWTO, FHCM, Decathlon, Sympatex, Gore-Tex) and multiple participants (DG ENV, EEB, FESI, EURATEX, CEC, COTANCE). Due to the COVID-19 situation, and its consequences on the ability of the Secretariat to mobilise funds to run the PEF project as planned and deliver on 31 December 2022, additional means were necessary to accelerate the delivery of supporting studies and for the communication of the overall project.
OBJECTIVES
The LIFE Supporting Studies PEF A&F project has two objectives:
- To conduct supporting studies for a range of product categories, representative of all products in the textile and footwear value chain, to enable the Technical Secretariat to simulate the validity of the assumptions made while developing a methodology to calculate the footprint of a product;
- In parallel, to develop and implement a communication strategy so that the Secretariat and all relevant stakeholders are informed of the upcoming methodology and assessment of the environmental footprint of products in the textile and footwear sectors.
RESULTS
Expected results:
- 39 supporting studies, with their 39 independent reviews;
- A media strategy and its execution: a communication toolkit in at least five EU languages (English, German, French, Italian, Spanish), a web presence, and reports.
