Kering focuses efforts on reducing environmental impact of its fashion empire

Kering is taking a major step towards making the fashion industry more sustainable, in tandem with the environmental charity The Savory Institute.

The luxury behemoth, which counts brands such as Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga on its books, has joined forces with the farming non-profit to promote the role of regenerative agriculture within the fashion industry.

The conglomerate has announced that it is now a ‘Frontier Founder' under Savory's ‘Land to Market' program, which works to develop the regenerative agriculture framework in global fashion supply chains, in an effort to reduce the negative impact that the industry has on the environment. This includes reversing the effects of soil degradation and the conversion of natural ecosystems, as well as biodiversity loss. Kering will use The Savory Institute's ‘Ecological Outcome Verification' methodology in its leather and fiber supply chains that come from grazing systems, meaning that the brand's wool and cashmere production will be more sustainable.

"Regenerative agriculture is a multi-benefit solution which supports Kering's sustainability ambitions to mitigate our environmental impacts and deliver positive outcomes along our supply chain," said Marie-Claire Daveu, Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of international institutional affairs at Kering, in a statement. "We are proud to collaborate with Savory to pioneer innovative and nature-based solutions in fashion as part of our broader commitment to contribute to solving our industry's global challenges around biodiversity and climate change."

"This is an important step forward for fashion and we commend Kering's leaders for having the foresight to build an approach to sourcing that is rooted in regenerative outcomes," added Daniela Ibarra-Howell, Savory Institute CEO. "It's a win for farmers, consumers and of course, the environment on which we all depend."

Kering is the latest in a long line of fashion giants to address their environmental impact this year -- with groups such as H&M, PVH and Gap also launching various initiatives over the course of this year to reduce the negative consequences of their supply chains on the planet.