About the Higg Index System for Measuring Sustainability

Higg Index
September 30, 2022 By Add Comment

Have you ever shopped on-line and wondered how some brands are able to make such detailed claims on the environmental benefits of their products?  It’s likely that they are using the Higg Index. The Higg Index is basically a software program where brands enter as much data as they can on their products and supply chain.  The data is shared with on-line sellers which can give a sustainable tag to a product, depending on the advise of the software.

In practice, it’s a useful tool for consumers to learn more about which sustainable features products have. It’s also a useful tool for brands to measure their efforts towards sustainability.

That said, it’s still a work in progress. Recently the Norwegian Consumer Council has passed a negative verdict on the Higg Index, and on German e-commerce giant Zalando in Particular. This according to a recent article in Apparel Insider.

BERLIN – Zalando, the German fashion retailer, has won the inaugural greenwashing award of the Norwegian Consumer Council for 2022. The jury on the council justified the award partly because the Zalando uses a filter on its website based on the Higg MSI index of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. The Norwegian authorities have recently deemed Higg labels to be greenwashing and Zalando has said it will now remove the filter.

Looking at the Zalando website, it does have the appearance of greenwashing. For example, a ladies melton coat made of 94% synthetic fibres gets a sustainability tag because it contains 30%-40% recycled materials. While the effort’s appreciated, consumers would be better off buying a coat with much lower synthetic content and higher natural fibre content. It could be greenwashing, it could also be just a matter of some debugging of the software.

Savvy Garments does not work with the Higg Index and instead we issue our own advise on the sustainable clothing production. We strongly advise against greenwashing as this can really backfire.

We are a clothing manufacturer located in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. If you are interested in working with us, you can reach out to us here!