(I wrote this as part of my degree, the facts have all been sourced from various sources and are not my own - references at the end)
I recently embarked on a fashion mission to find a real fur coat but as my feet began to ache and all I’d felt beneath my fingers was the rougher texture of ‘faux’ fur, I began to realise it wasn’t a common thing to find in a shopping centre anymore. Indeed the feeling of walking out of your favourite store clutching the latest must have fur-accessory, running your hands through the soft material and feeling as if you are actually exuding luxury, may soon be impossible. The fashion greats, Versace, Chanel, Dior, have always been targeted by dedicated anti-fur protesters but now many of the world’s most prestigious designers are being attacked from within. Stella McCartney is well known for her vegetarianism and of course her animal loving parents Paul and the late Linda McCartney, so this week’s new battle may come as no surprise. A recent book released by the Animal Rights organisation PETA’s President, includes essays from Stella as well as other famous faces from Brigitte Bardot to the Dalai Lama. As this new book’s title suggests, One can make a difference, the power of one voice can cause more debate than you might first think. Stella revealed she sent video’s showing how animals that are used for their fur are treated to various designers but commented that "Karl Lagerfeld, rather predictably, felt he needed to return the video!" and that "Dolce & Gabbana were disgracefully rude about it, too." Stella might only be one voice but she sure knows how to use it. But who’s right?
The facts about fur
• Over a Million people are employed in the fur industry.
• Fur can come from animals that are farmed or from the wild although almost 85% comes from fur farms.
• EU sales totalled over £3 million in 2007
• Issues surrounding welfare meant fur farming was banned here in 2001, although Mink farming is still legal in Ireland.
• The fur industry is responsible for the death of a staggering 5.5 million animals each year.
Fur has been used for the more practical reasons of warmth and protection for thousands of years but the Ancient Egyptians, like we do today, also used fur to show luxury: you can just imagine the most powerful Egyptians strutting around draped in all manner of animals’ coats. Here in Europe, in the 10th Century, fur was first used just for linings and trimmings but Victorians brought our idea of a fur coat into the fashion radar. From the 1900’s onwards, many leading French designers used fur liberally in their collections. Grazia favourite Christian Dior was one of the first designers to begin using fur for all kinds of items and today the catwalks are awash with luxurious fur, with over 400 designers using it in their ready to wear and haute couture collections.
So where’s the problem?
Should we take a different look at our latest fur coat? Imagine walking into a shop and seeing hundreds of mink and foxes instead of clothes. Could you choose which one’s fur you most liked and send it off for the slaughter?
Another issue that sometimes makes buyers think twice is the fact that cat and dog fur is sometimes used and what’s worse is it isn’t always labelled correctly. Dog fur can come under various names like Goupee, Sobaki and Gae-wolf, so you may not always know what you’re buying. This might still be acceptable by some, if it wasn’t for the fact many of the cats and dogs used for this purpose are taken off the streets and could have been one of our beloved pets. When the Humane Society of the United States sent investigators to capture secret footage what they found raised many questions about the fur industry. They discovered that around 2 million domestic animals are killed each year for their fur. Some of these animals were found hanging by their necks with wire noose, whilst enough water to drown them was poured down their throats. Others were simply skinned alive so that their fur would stay in the best possible condition. These appalling scenes sound more like something out of a horror film than real life.
But …
These practices are supposedly rare and are illegal, with the fur trade being closely monitored. Fur is also a natural product and, unlike ‘fake’ fur which is made from plastic based materials, it doesn’t use up natural resources which is a bonus for all those eco-friendly shoppers amongst us. Also the capture of wild animals, it can be argued, is necessary for controlling population and stopping the spread of disease but many of these ‘facts’ are hard to prove. The convention of International Trade in Endangered species does, however, keep an eye on the trading of threatened animals: which, perhaps, is something.
Also if you do want to ensure your coat isn’t from a cat or dog, today the OA ™ label is used. This is only used for items definitely sourced from countries where the trading of fur is regulated. So at least we can be safe in the knowledge the fur on our own clothes has come from a regulated source.
Who still uses it?
When A-listers still want to be seen in the latest furs then the top designers will keep providing them. Everyone from the classically styled Maggie Gyllenhall to the modern rebel Pixie Geldof has been seen out and about in fur with the most popular types being fox and mink. Recently Agyness Deyn was pictured working the neutral trend with a coyote coat and Lindsay Lohan used a black mink capelet to tone down a sequinned cocktail dress.
The list of designers still using fur reads like a Who’s Who of fashion. The prestigious – Versace, Dior and Gucci, and the modern – Giles Deacon, Ann-Sophie Back and
Alexander Mcqueen, all used fur in their recent collections. Karl Lagerfield often uses fur in his Chanel collection and he is also behind Fendi who have their famous range specifically for fur garments: Yet he is one of the leading designers to have felt the need to recently fight back against the anti-fur brigade. Although he admitted to not wearing fur himself, and not enjoying eating meat, he also commented that hunters in the north “make a living having learnt nothing else than hunting” and concluded that “In a meat-eating world, wearing leather for shoes and clothes and even handbags, the discussion of fur is childish.” His strong opinions may have some basis in truth but is it enough to say that just because this is how things are, that they should stay this way?
Who doesn’t?
In reality hardly any high-end designers adamantly use no fur at all in their collections but out of the very few that don’t, there can be seen some influential names; Vivienne Westwood, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and of course Stella McCartney being the most widely recognised. When it comes to high street stores however it is a different story with a much higher number of names not selling any fur, although if you know where to look, various smaller chains and boutiques still do. Some of our favourite brands not using fur include H&M, Zara, Levi, Selfridges and Topshop.
People on the street –
Grazia went out onto the street to ask shoppers what they thought about fur. Many people had heard ‘horror’ stories including tales of “people batterring little dog(s) around the head then skinning them.” A vision no one could forget in a hurry. If you were to be the unlucky person whose job it was to discover such practices, it would be an experience that would change your opinion on fur forever. 100% of the people we asked also said that they felt it was unfair to kill animals purely for their fur. 18 year old James said “we should eat them aswell thats why using leather is alright” and university student Evan thought “If we have to kill animals, we should make use of all of it, not just the bit we can get most money for.” Though, only 60% said fur should be banned completely especially, some felt, as it would still be carried out illegally without the ability to monitor it. The over-riding view seemed to be that although the fur trade shouldn’t be banned completely, fur used for fashion should only come from animals already being humanely farmed for their meat.
What does this mean for the future of fashion?
It’s easy to imagine the rich and famous all being on the same side, attending their glitzy A-list parties; us against them, but as you’ve seen, in truth they don’t always see eye to eye. Those like Stella will always continue to target designers still using fur. It can already be seen that the anti-fur movement has had great effects on the fashion industry:
As although fur is still a key player on the catwalks, you’d be hard pushed to find a real fur coat in any of the most common high street stores.
So is it a necessary item for all of us to splash out on once in a while? Or, more likely, will our spending always be causing unnecessary suffering; specifically if it isn’t from animals already being farmed for meat?
British Fur Trade Association, http://www.britishfur.co.uk [accessed May 2009]
IFTF Fashion Media Centre, http://www.fur-style.com [accessed May 2009]
RSPCA Online, http://www.rspca.org.uk [accessed May 2009] The Coalition to
Abolish the Fur Trade, http://www.caft.org.uk [accessed May 2009]
The PETA Files, http://blog.peta.org/archives/2008/10/stella_mccartne.php [accessed May 2009]
Adams, Stephen, ‘Karl Lagerfeld defends fur industry saying 'beasts' would kill us if we didn't kill them’, Daily Telegraph, http://www.telegraph.co.uk [accessed May 2009]
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