Faux fur vs. real fur: the greener choice

Is fur a green fashion source?

Eco-fashion is rising to become an important aspect in an industry where it's difficult to use ethical resources. Conventional cotton uses pesticides, so we prefer organic cotton. But when it comes to animals, things change.

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We have ahimsa or peace silk that's taken after a silkworm finishes its life cycle. We have organic wool that's taken from sheep, alpaca, goats, and other animals that were not exposed to pesticides. But for fur, the ecological choice is faux fur. But is this the right choice?


Usually made from various petrochemicals, faux fur is made up of synthetic fibers. Most synthetic materials are made from chemicals, yet still considered to be better eco-choices because they're fake. 


Real fur comes from animals without their permission, going against the odds of ethical fashion. Do we have the right to take this creature's fur? No, but we do. Real fur may be eco-friendlier than faux fur since it's naturally occurring and sustainable as in we use the resources available to us.

It's a technical debate as in many topics within eco-fashion that falls under the umbrella of ethical fashion. Things depend on what's considered to be ethical and who makes these considerations. 



Fur is Green is a pro-website for fur as an eco-fashion material. It also explores the separate debate of killing and using the furs of invasive species whose populations grew too large to the point the environment is suffering.


Do we still have the right to decimate a certain population because it's messing up the water resource in an area? Or do we just send the invasive species back to the homeland and hope they can re-adapt there? Though this practice seems to be sound now, it could lead to the foreign, overpopulated communities turning into endangered species.

As two major clothing materials, fur and leather falls in the middle of the dispute whether they're eco-fashion or their chemically-created faux counterparts are.