Slashing methane emissions is the fastest way fashion brands can help to reduce global temperatures.

CFJ has produced the industry’s first ever methane footprint, and helps brands track and reduce their own CH4 footprint.

Methane must be cut 30% by 2030
to curb climate catastrophe.

Methane emissions are 86 times more potent than carbon in the short-term, worsening global warming rapidly.

The good news? Methane only lasts ~20 years in the atmosphere, as compared to hundreds of years for carbon.

Cutting methane emissions now reduces global temperatures quickly: methane mitigation is our climate emergency brake.

Over the next 20 years, without change the fashion industry could emit an estimated 712 million tonnes of carbon equivalent emissions, or 8.13 million tonnes of methane every year.

Despite making up under 4% of overall material use in the fashion industry, 75% of fashion’s methane footprint is tied to animal-derived leather, wool and cashmere production. 

The Paris Agreement will fail without methane mitigation, and the fashion industry is on track to overshoot it by 50% more emissions than we can afford, unless radical action is taken now.

This data is from our white paper and report, Now or never: a first methane footprint for the fashion industry.

This first of its kind fashion industry methane footprint estimate was produced with researchers from Cornell and New York University.

It includes fashion’s full methane footprint breakdown, why methane matters, and recommendations for fashion industry action. The white paper is more technical, the report is more digestible.

Download our white paper and report below.

Above, see how a brand almost exclusively using animal-derived leather and wool could take action to meet 30% methane reduction by 2030 targets.

Brands with a more diverse range of materials used (that are less methane-intensive) will not need to act as radically. These methane reduction pathways are extreme but science-based. If targets are not met (all efforts should be made to ensure they are), the next best time to reduce methane is as soon as practically possible, so this graph also shows outcomes which meet the 30% reduction target in the years following 2030.

If the fashion industry prioritises reducing methane emissions, it will more quickly reduce global temperatures.

Collective Fashion Justice helps brands to track their methane footprint and model tailored methane reduction pathways and strategies to achieve them.


Get in touch below to join our Methane Reduction Program waiting list, launching very soon.

Contact us about reducing methane in your fashion business:

Whether you have already assessed your CO2e emissions across all scopes of the supply chain and want to deepen your understanding of methane and its mitigation specifically, or you are still assessing your entire supply chain’s emissions, we are here to help.

Hear from climate leaders endorsing our research and the need for urgent methane mitigation:

  • George Monbiot:

    “Without urgent methane mitigation we cannot solve the climate crisis. Collective Fashion Justice’s new research shows the fashion industry must curb methane emissions and that to do so, the industry’s role in methane-intensive animal agriculture through leather and wool use can no longer be ignored.

    We must reduce our reliance on these animal-based systems and shift to plant production not just in food but in fashion.”

    George Monbiot is a journalist, environmentalist, and political activist.

  • Changing Markets Foundation:

    “For too long, fashion has escaped scrutiny on methane. Now this research puts a hard number on fashion’s methane footprint and makes clear: if fashion - especially luxury brands built on leather and wool - is serious about climate action, methane can no longer be left off the balance sheet.

    This requires bold and meaningful action. We can’t end up with false solutions such as trading leather and wool for a flood of synthetics, which will only swap methane emissions for plastic pollution. The sector needs to set bold climate targets and invest in solutions, such as next-generation materials and genuine circularity.” 

    Urska Trunk, Senior Campaign Manager, Changing Markets Foundation

  • Center for Biological Diversity

    “The fashion industry’s footprint is too big to ignore, especially when slashing methane emissions is crucial to staving off the worst impacts of the climate crisis. This report not only reveals the hidden cost of the most harmful materials, it also provides a way forward for climate-conscious fashion.”

    Stephanie Feldstein, Population and Sustainability Director, Center for Biological Diversity

  • Action Speaks Louder:

    “Carbon tunnel vision in the fashion industry is a huge missed opportunity for mitigating and adapting to the increasing threat of climate change. This research calculating fashion's methane footprint is crucial not only for addressing the elephant in the room of animal agriculture, but also for raising the alarm on false decarbonisation solutions like fossil gas.

    Fashion brands must consider the holistic impacts of their material and energy choices; here it becomes clear that supporting their suppliers to produce next-generation, animal- and fossil-free materials with clean renewable energy from solar and wind is the only path forward.”

    Action Speaks Louder is a respected research, policy analysis, and public campaigning NGO pressing companies to stop driving climate crisis and lead on climate action.

  • Dr Lesley Hughes:

    “The control of methane emissions is the low-hanging fruit of climate action. Just as we need to think about our climate footprint for travel, electricity, and diet, we must also consider the impact of what we buy, especially what we wear.

    This report puts real numbers on the methane impact of the fashion industry - and it’s high time we had this information.”

    Dr Lesley Hughes is a Distinguished Professor of Biology and Interim Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science & Engineering. She is a former Lead Author in the IPCC’s 4th and 5th Assessment Report, a former federal Climate Commissioner and now a Councillor and Director with the Climate Council of Australia. She is also a member of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists.

Further resources and reports to help you understand fashion’s major methane sources

  • Under their skin: leather report series

    This report series explores the ethical and environmental impacts of animal-derived leather, with a focus on climate impacts, regenerative leather claims and methane.

    The final report in the series explores just transition opportunities beyond leather, including a table list of all next-gen leather innovators producing recycled and bio-based alternative materials.

    Read it

  • What do IPCC reports mean for fashion?

    The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change releases the most important reports regarding the climate crisis and how we can mitigate it.

    We’ve unpacked the IPCC’s latest report and what it means for the fashion industry specifically — methane plays a major role in what we must do next.

    Read it

  • Shear Destruction: a report on wool

    This report, in collaboration with the Center for Biological Diversity, includes an in-depth section on the climate impact of wool, exploring methane specifically.

    The report also covers biodiversity and a range of other environmental factors to consider in relation to wool sourcing and alternative materials.

    Read it