Words by Smiley Team
In a positive step for animal rights, clothing brand Canada Goose has announced it will phase out fur from its fashion ranges. The company promises to stop purchasing fur by the end of 2021 and remove it from all products no later than the end of 2022.
This comes as particularly good news to coyotes, a species living wild in Canada, whose fur was used to line and edge clothing produced by the brand.
Welcoming the decision, CEO of animal welfare charity Humane Canada, Barbara Cartwright, said: “This is a significant step forward toward building a more humane and sustainable world. We applaud Canada Goose’s commitment to end the use of all fur by late 2022 and the leadership position they are taking in their industry.”
The move comes as part of the company’s ‘Humanature’ initiative to help protect wildlife. The scheme includes commitments to sustainable production, support for conservation organisation Polar Bear International, and a buy back programme for used Canada Goose fur.
“Our focus has always been on making products that deliver exceptional quality, protection from the elements, and perform the way consumers need them to; this decision transforms how we will continue to do just that,” said president and CEO of Canada Goose Dani Reiss.
“We continue to expand – across geographies and climates – launching new categories and products designed with intention, purpose and functionality. At the same time, we are accelerating the sustainable evolution of our designs,” he added.
Canada Goose has long faced criticism from the animal rights movement, including from campaign group Peta, who are celebrating the recent decision. The organisation staged die-ins and other demonstrations against the company using fur. In the UK this included a 15-month protest outside its Regent Street store.
Peta’s founder, Ingrid Newkirk, announced: “Peta and its affiliates are suspending their international campaigns against Canada Goose today, after years of eye-catching protests, hard-hitting exposés, celebrity actions, and legal battles, as the company has finally conceded and will stop using fur – sparing sensitive, intelligent, coyotes from being caught and killed in barbaric steel traps.”
But for the animal rights campaign, Canada Goose isn’t yet entirely off the hook. “Peta will now re-engage the company to push for an end to its use of feathers, which geese and ducks continue to suffer for,” Newkirk added.
The clothing company has denied the activists had any influence over their decision to eliminate fur from their collections. It is also probable that changing trends caused them to drop fur, with London fashion week along with prominent brands going fur free as early as 2018.
In response, Newkirk said: “It would be hard to believe that PETA’s campaign of physical protests, stockholder resolutions, litigation, celebrity ads, billboards, and hundreds of thousands of potential customers’ emails didn’t push Canada Goose to realise fur is dead, but as almost all designers, retailers, and high-profile individuals have spurned fur, we welcome the company’s decision and urge it now to take a hard look at where the feathers it uses come from.”
Keep an eye on Canada Goose’s progress towards sustainability here.
To help Peta protect animals against abuse, donate or volunteer.
