The presence of toxins in various clothing brands has met its opposition, and it is growing by the thousands. Greenpeace’s Detox campaign, launched in 2011, was created in an effort to get the fashion industry to eradicate toxins from its products by 2020.
Last month, the world’s largest fashion retailer, Zara, as well as its parent company Inditex, became the eighth brand to commit to the elimination of hazardous chemicals in its supply chains and products since the Detox campaign began.
Shortly after the Detox campaign launched its report, “Toxic Threads: The Big Fashion Stitch-Up,” on Nov. 20, the campaign has gained more than 315,000 supporters committed to demanding toxic-free fashion from retailers around the world.
Greenpeace’s Detox campaign is also demanding that fashion brands make a commitment to require their suppliers to disclose any information regarding the release of toxic chemicals from their facilities. Zara and Inditex will require 20 suppliers to disclose pollution data starting as early as March 2013 and says it hopes to increase that number to 100 suppliers by the end of 2013.
— Hayley Proctor
THREAT OF WILD MUSHROOMS RETURNS
It’s mushroom hunting season, but poison control center staff are advising caution before diving into what appear to be edible fungi.
More than 1,700 cases of poisonous mushroom ingestion were reported in the state of California during 2009 and 2010, including two deaths. Experts will tell you that it’s hard to identify poisonous wild mushrooms from edible varieties. In November of this year, four people in California died and a few others were hospitalized in one case of wild mushroom poisoning. Locally, the website coloradomushrooms.com can help to identify poisonous mushrooms in this area.
— Hayley Proctor
