Boohoo appears to have got itself in a bit of a twist over its stance on selling products containing wool: the online retailer announced on Saturday it would ban wool, citing animal welfare concerns – but u-turned just hours later.
The retailer, which also owns Nasty Gal and Pretty Little Thing, appears to have backtracked following criticism, as one sheep farmer told Sky News he was “absolutely disgusted” at its decision not to sell wool.
After announcing the ban on Saturday, Boohoo issued a revised statement saying it was “committed to ensuring the wool used in our supply chain comes from good husbandry and meets high levels of animal welfare, and will continue to use wool as a sustainable material.”
There have been concerns from animal welfare charities – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and Humane Society International – over the treatment of sheep reared for wool. PETA said “no jumper or scarf is worth kicking, punching and killing gentle sheep on the shearing floor”.
But John Royale, head of livestock at the National Farmers’ Union, said wool is the most sustainable of all fibres and is far better for the environment than creating plastic fibres, which create pollution. “Shearing sheep stops them getting heatstroke,” he said.
To add confusion to the move, the Daily Telegraph analysed the products on sale across Boohoo and its other brands and found that no wool was on sale in the first place – raising the question over whether it was simply a PR stunt.
HuffPost UK contacted Boohoo for comment but has not had a response at time of writing.