South Korea's fashion industry is taking strides to "go green."
The move is being driven by local consumers who increasingly make their shopping choices based on their ethical principles.
Hong Yoo reports.

Sometimes it's not the design or the color of the clothes that matters to consumers -- it's the material. And a new trend says materials need to be eco-friendly.

The fashion industry is creating "green clothes" -- garments made from environmentally friendly materials.
K2, a Korean outdoor brand, has come up with a product made out of eco-friendly hanji -- that is, traditional paper -- handmade from mulberry trees, and other natural sources like Chinese yams.
They are also doing a "clean bag campaign," handing out bags to hikers at the entraces to mountain trails so they can collect their garbage.

"We hope that through our campaign, we can not only sustainably protect the environment but create a synergy effect and get our customers to be part of it too."

The brand Patagonia has released a "ReCircle Collection" using recyclable wood pulp, and they're donating 1% of their annual profit each year to environmental organizations worldwide.
Marmot, another outdoor brand, has released the "Marmot thread line" using thread made from plastic waste.

"This t-shirt is made out of 50% of upcycled plastic and 50% recycled cotton, which saves 435 liters of water compared to the normal process of making a t-shirt. It uses about 3 recycled plastic bottles, and reduces C-O-2 emissions by 300 grams."

"When clothes are thrown away, they don't decompose because they're mostly made out of petroleum-based materials, and burning them releases toxic substances into the air. Therefore, recycling the material is a way of getting rid of environmentally harmful materials."

The fashion brand Beanpole has yet another campaign -- donating old bicycles that have been refurbished like new. It's called "Bike We Like." The bicycles are donated to island villages.

With more attention on environmental issues and the damage caused by certain materials or methods of production, the demand for eco-friendly products is growing, and the clothing industry will have to keep adapting to consumers' growing preference for environmentally-friendly products.
Hong Yoo, Arirang News.