Containers are seen on the Maersk's Triple-E giant container ship Majestic Maersk, one of the world's largest container ships, next to cranes at the APM Terminals in the port of Algeciras, Spain January 20, 2023.
Overall, the textile industry is estimated to be responsible for between 2% and 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a United Nations Environment ProgrammeThe shipping industry, which itself aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, has begun offering low-emission fuels such as biofuels made from cooking oil and food waste or methanol produced from renewable energy as an alternative to fuel oil.
The fashion industry accounted for 26% of the more than 240,000 containers that Maersk shipped last year using biofuels under its ECO Delivery contracts, making it the biggest sector using the low-emission fuel service, the company said. "Many of the fashion brands have actually been the ones going for this," Josue Alzamora, global head of lifestyle vertical at Maersk, told Reuters at this week's Global Fashion Summit in Copenhagen.Nearly one out of 10 containers Maersk, the number two global ocean container shipping firm, handled for owners of fashion brands last year was shipped using biofuels, he said.
H&M, the world's second-biggest fashion retailer, said in 2022 that over the past two years it had purchased eco fuel for a "significant share" of its ocean transports. It has stated its ambition to become "climate positive" by 2040.Retail giants including Amazon