Animal rights charity welcomes LFW fur ban

The British Fashion Council confirmed last week that no animal fur would be used at London Fashion Week this September, following a survey with its members, as part of its Positive Fashion initiative, which aims to celebrate industry best practice and encourage positive change.

The BFC stated in a press release that it “supports the creativity of designers and keeps an open dialogue with the industry, from designers to media, retailers, business leaders, government and global brands while encouraging designers to make ethical choices when it comes to their selection of materials and supply chain”.

Comment on the move, Wendy Higgins, director of Communications for Humane Society International UK said in a statement: “This is a pivotal moment in the demise of the cruel fur trade. We are thrilled that the British Fashion Council has made this trail-blazing decision for London Fashion Week to go fur-free. It sends out a clarion call of compassion to the other fashion weeks in New York, Paris and Milan to similarly take a bold ethical stance, and it challenges too those designers still using fur to re-examine their morals.

“Fur cruelty is no longer welcome on the catwalk at London Fashion Week, and that is a powerful and exhilarating victory for animals that we hope others will follow. It is truly symbolic that London should be leading the way, in the same way that the UK led the way with the world’s first fur farming ban in 2000, and in the same way we hope the British government will lead the way by banning fur imports.The future is fur-free, and this week with designers Burberry dropping fur and now LFW too, we all just took one step closer to realising that future.”

The announcement came days after Burberry confirmed that real fur would no longer be part of its collections as part of its new sustainable initiatives.

In recent years, fur protests have targeted not just Burberry but designers including Mary Katrantzou and Gareth Pugh for including fur in their collections.

London Fashion Week spring/summer 2019 womenswear showcase starts on September 14.