For immediate release:
19 February 2021
Contact:
Moira Collie 202-483-7382
New York – To convince consumers that it is ethical, J.Crew announced the adoption of a “good” cashmere standard, which led PETA to send a letter to CEO Libby Wadle this morning describing the many ways the “standard” does not protect animals and deceives potential buyers. PETA is urging the company to be honest about the misery of the cashmere shown in the investigation videos and to stop selling it.
PETA says J.Crew understands that consumers are unlikely to discover the shocking facts about the “standard,” including the following: it allows farmers not trained to euthanasia to kill kiddies by blunt force trauma, and farmers to rip their fur off live goats. sharp metal rake; it does not require any certification of off-farm animal slaughter sites, which could include those similar to slaughterhouses where PETA Asia eyewitnesses found workers hitting goats in the head with a hammer and slitting their throats; and this requires that only 10% of the “certified” farms are audited only once a year.
“Jay Crew is in financial trouble and appears to be desperate enough to try to trick clients with bogus standards that do not protect animals from extreme cruelty,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is urging the company to move away from cashmere and stop ‘humane washing’ or it could be on the wrong end of a consumer fraud lawsuit.”
PETA, whose motto is in part that “the animals are not ours” – opposes arrogance, a worldview focused on human superiority. For more information please visit PETA.org or subscribe to the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram…
This is followed by a letter from PETA to Wadle.
Libby Wadle, CEO
J.Crew Group
Dear Ms. Wadle:
On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and our 6.5 million members and supporters around the world, I am writing to express my deep disappointment at J. Crew’s statement that your company has decided to hide behind meaningless “good” cashmere “standard” that will never eliminate cruelty. Please think again and I will explain why we think this will benefit you.
If J.Crew continues to sell cashmere, it will be exposed as false claims that it cares about the welfare of animals, and today’s (especially young) consumers will stop you.
The company is financially drowning, but using humane phrases to sell the same old violent “materials” shows a striking lack of cultural awareness and won’t save you. In the midst of a global pandemic, companies are looking at their impact on society and how they can be more empathetic. This public opinion must include reflection on all the deeply disturbing ways in which animals are raised and killed for their skin, wool and hair, including cashmere.
PETA has published revelations of dozens of objects around the world that show that animals used to make clothing are maiming, being abused, and even, often, skinning them alive. including “sustainable” and “responsible” farms… Labeling cashmere products “good” is an obvious distraction from what really happens to animals, and standards will not prevent most suffering, even if followed exactly. The “good” cashmere standard (GCS) is tough for a number of reasons, including the following:
- it allows blunt trauma to be used to euthanize children up to 7 days (0.5). This is a method of killing that the American Veterinary Medical Association does not recommend for obvious reasons. GCS doesn’t even require farmers or staff to receive training on the correct way to euthanize goats. (8.0.7). Quite frankly, the fact that it’s even part of the standard with the word “good” in it should be enough to show that something is wrong.
- GCS does do not require certification of off-farm slaughterhouses (0). PETA Asia’s investigation revealed that slaughterhouse workers beat goats in the head with a hammer and slit their throats. On one slaughterhouse workers didn’t even try stun them. Some of the animals moved within minutes of the impact.
- Pain relief during the castration of the child is not a requirement (3.3).
- Shepherds are allowed to shear goats with a sharp metal comb (0.3), although this method is prohibited by other directives and is considered much more painful and dangerous for animals. PETA Asia’s investigation found workers nailed frightened, crying goats to the ground; tied their legs; and tore (I don’t use this word lightly) hair with combs. This terrifying and cruel ordeal left the animals with cuts from which they received no pain relievers or veterinary care.
- GCS does not indicate the maximum time goats can be restrained. while cutting and instead says that it “should be as short as possible” (0.8). Goats are predatory animals, which means they are afraid of being pinned down. Dealing with predatory animals is very stressful for them, as fight or flight is their deeply rooted instinctive response.
- Farms can simultaneously produce both GCS certified cashmere and uncertified cashmere. (0.7, p. 34). Certified Procurement Stations can also handle both GCS certified cashmere and non-certified cashmere (3.0.11). Thus, there is no transparency and accountability in the supply chain, and there is no guarantee that the company is actually buying “certified” cashmere.
- The Trade Aid Fund, which is run by GCS, requires at least 10% of “certified” farms to be audited annually.
This program is fake. Given the brutality inherent in the cashmere industry, the environmental impact of raising cashmere goats, and the plethora of affordable organic vegan cashmere options, there is no reason to continue selling goat cashmere. It is time to end this suffering and stop trying to deceive consumers with “standards” that absolutely do not protect animals from abuse. It’s also time to put an end to this humane advertising, or you may end up on the wrong end of a consumer fraud complaint or lawsuit. I don’t mean this as a threat, but as a call for change. We are always here to help in any way you may wish, but we cannot let this pass.
Yours sincerely,
Ingrid E. Newkirk
The president
MAP