In the wake of 9 days of consumer pressure accruing against many of the global retailers mentioned in Green Peace’s Detox Report last week, several are scrambling to curb the chemical footprint of their textiles. Pledging to eliminate all hazardous chemicals from their supply chain by 2020, Zara, the number one fashion retailer in the world, became the eighth company to sign Greenpeace’s zero-discharge roadmap earlier today.

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Zara, a brand within the Inditex group, is owned by Amancio Ortega Gaona, the third richest man in the world. According to the company’s website, “The company has committed to a wholesale reduction in the use of chemicals like formaldehyde, arylamines, phenols (PCP, TeCP), cadmium, lead, chromium (VI), nickel, and allergenic dyes.”  Opening more than a store a day for several years with an average of about 500 a year, Inditex makes 840 million garments a year and has around 5,900 stores in 85 countries. With a portfolio as colossal as theirs, I for one am thankful to hear that they will be doing their best to eliminate these toxic chemicals from their manufacturing practices.