Vietnam runs the risk of losing orders from global clothing brands if domestic textile and garment manufacturers do not incorporate changes in line with sustainable and greener production, better energy conservation and higher responsibility for environment, a seminar co-hosted by the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) and the WWF was told recently.
As global brands now favour ‘green businesses’ in Vietnam, polluting manufacturers may face the heat.
More than 250 global fashion brands have set standards and codes of conduct responsible to the environment applicable to their suppliers.
Vietnamese garment businesses are therefore expected to comply with green production, which will help them do business more effectively, generate higher profit and sustain growth rates. Garment factories are supposed to save energy and water, use environment-friendly materials and fulfill their corporate social responsibility.
VITAS sustainable development board head Tran Nhu Tung said most of the enterprises involved in the garment supply chain formed by global fashion brands have adopted the green requirements for production, such as assuming their corporate social responsibility, being friendly to the environment and cutting emissions, according to a Vietnamese newspaper report.
For the immediate future, the implementation of sustainable development criteria may be a challenge to domestic garment manufacturers as these criteria require huge investment and personnel. However, in the long run, argued Tung, the credibility and brand value of the business in question will be better.