01. The path to green transformation in the textile and apparel industry
Guotai Huasheng (GTHS), established in 1988, is a core subsidiary of the state-owned Jiangsu Guotai International Group Corporation Limited. As a key member of the group, Guotai Huasheng actively promotes high-quality industrialization and globalized supply chain systems, offering comprehensive services to premium clients in global sectors such as textiles, apparel, yarn, fabrics, home textiles, accessories, and daily necessities.
The green transformation of the textile and apparel industry requires global cooperation. Initiatives like the International Textile and Apparel Green Trade Initiative are fostering collaboration within the industry to achieve common sustainable development goals.
Jiangsu Guotai International Group is actively pursuing green transformation and has joined the International Textile and Apparel Green Trade Initiative. This not only showcases leadership among top brands in the textile and apparel industry but also represents a commitment to sustainable development. Guotai Huasheng's Assistant Manager of Sustainable Development Department, Xi Dongjing stated, "This action will drive the entire textile and apparel industry towards a greener and more environmentally friendly direction."
Currently, Guotai Huasheng has taken proactive steps in green transformation across its supply chain. These include optimizing supply chain management and collaborating with suppliers who use sustainable materials. Additionally, through collaboration with Carbon Newture, Guotai Huasheng has achieved authoritative third-party certification for a cotton cashmere product using Carbon Newture's digital carbon management platform and full-process "carbon footprint calculation-certification-disclosure" services. The certification results have been uploaded to the International Carbon Disclosure Platform for Textile and Apparel, ensuring consumers can verify the authenticity of carbon information associated with their products at any time.
In the face of the complexity of global supply chains, the International Carbon Disclosure Platform for Textile and Apparel has helped Guotai Huasheng enhance transparency and sustainability across its supply chain. Xi Dongjing believes, "The platform records carbon emissions at every stage from raw material procurement to sales, increasing supply chain transparency and enhancing trust from our partners. Utilizing blockchain technology, the platform provides an immutable and secure data recording method for our supply chain."
Regarding the significance of conducting carbon footprint accounting and certification for products, Xi Dongjing explained, "Sustainability is a broad concept. Starting with carbon footprinting to drive green transformation, tools like carbon calculation allow us to diagnose and treat various aspects of our supply chain more effectively."
"Carbon footprint calculation and certification not only quantify energy conservation, emissions reduction efforts, and the optimization of supply chains but also emphasize the value of our sustainability initiatives."
For the textile and apparel industry, carbon footprint accounting and certification have become increasingly crucial. They help companies understand the greenhouse gas emissions produced during the manufacturing process and take steps to reduce them.
Using Guotai Huasheng as an example, after calculating the carbon footprint data using Carbon Newture's digital carbon management platform, Xi Dongjing highlighted that they can inform brand customers precisely about the carbon emissions of their products and the specific annual reductions achieved. This underscores the supportive role of the Sustainable Development Department in assisting companies with production and management.
"These data are crucial as they demonstrate our commitment and efforts in green transformation, rather than merely claiming to be environmentally friendly," Xi Dongjing emphasized.
02.Driving climate neutrality across the value chain with brand customers
Currently, governments worldwide are introducing policies and regulations to drive the global textile and apparel industry towards greater sustainability. In international trade, how does Guotai Huasheng respond to the varying green standards and regulations in different markets?
Xi Dongjing mentioned, "The current international situation is quite complex, with countries continuously introducing various green standards, including product and industry standards. Guotai Huasheng, along with the entire value chain and supply chain, aims to achieve energy conservation and emissions reduction in terms of equipment, processes, and more."
"Many of Guotai Huasheng's leading brand customers are aiming for carbon neutrality around 2040, and as a upstream entity in their supply or value chain, we cannot remain indifferent to this goal," Xi Dongjing remarked. Furthermore, as a leader in the textile and apparel industry, Guotai Huasheng actively urges its upstream suppliers to achieve better annual emissions reductions in processes and technologies to meet customer green standards.
Against this backdrop, Guotai Huasheng is actively exploring collaborative carbon reduction models throughout the textile and apparel supply chain to drive overall green and low-carbon transformation. According to Guotai Huasheng's future green transformation plans, they will install photovoltaic panels at over twenty production facilities domestically and internationally, gradually phasing out high-emission, low-efficiency production equipment. They will also develop new energy-saving and emission-reducing technologies to integrate into production processes. In the supply chain, they aim to gradually replace high-emission enterprises with suppliers that excel in energy conservation and emissions reduction, thus collectively promoting the industry towards green and energy-efficient practices.
"Our sustainable vision is to collaborate with brand customers in achieving climate neutrality across the value chain", Xi Dongjing concluded.
03.Conclusion
The textile and apparel industry, as a crucial component of the global economy, bears a significant responsibility in driving sustainable development. As leading consumer brands in the industry increasingly act as chain anchors and set higher environmental standards for their upstream suppliers, more middle to upper-tier companies like Guotai Huasheng are actively responding and taking steps. They are dedicated to meeting the sustainable goals and requirements of brand customers, advancing with a firm commitment to green transformation. Together with their brand partners, they are leading the industry towards a more sustainable future.