Major UK fashion brands ban down feathers

Topshop, Primark, Warehouse, Asos, and Boohoo are among fashion retailers who have pledged to ban down feathers from their collections following an exposé by animal rights campaigner Peta.

The organisation states that down feathers, used to stuff jackets, duvets, pillows and sleeping bags, are being obtained by ripping out struggling geese’s feathers by the fistful, leaving open, bloody wounds, leaving the birds in agony.

Peta has released a video that shows workers in China, which sources 80 percent of the worlds’ down, pinning geese down and ripping their feathers out, even though these farms have connections to retail suppliers that are certified by the Responsible Down Standard, which prohibits live plucking of geese.

The animal rights campaigner has gathered a lot of support from fashion retailers committing to keep down out of their future collections, including Burton, Cath Kidston, Dorothy Perkins, Dr Martens, Evans, Hobbs, Miss Selfridge, Oasis, Outfit, Topman, Wallis, and White Stuff.

Peta states on their website that retailers including Marks and Spencer and John Lewis have let to respond with their down-free policy, and the animal rights group is urging consumers to contact their customer services department to place pressure on them to commit to going down-free.

To promote the campaign Peta launched an advert starring reality star Lucy Watson to highlight that feathers belong on birds, not beds, and the alternatives to real down feathers.

Image: Peta