Gucci Bans Angora and Rabbit Felt

WEAR

May 5

The brand’s parent company Kering, which also owns the likes of Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, has strengthened its fur ban as demand for animal-free fashion continues to grow.

Luxury fashion group Kering - which owns the likes of Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Saint Laurent, and Alexander McQueen - has strengthened its ban on fur products by banning angora and rabbit felt across all its brands.

The move comes after Gucci caused controversy earlier this year after selling rabbit felt hats, despite the brand implementing a ban on fur products back in 2021.

At the time, Kering CEO and Chairman François-Henri Pinault, had said of the fur ban that "the world has changed, along with our clients, and luxury naturally needs to adapt to that."

But in January 2023, the group was accused of exploiting a loophole that suggested angora and rabbit felt fell outside of the fur definition, despite being the hair and fur of rabbits.

An angora rabbit farm in China. Credit: PETA

Now, Kering has confirmed to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) that “Kering’s implementation of the no-fur ban has been explicitly reinforced internally to ensure that no rabbit hair or skin is used by our brands.”

PETA were among those who welcomed the announcement.

“Angora and rabbit felt are torture for these sensitive animals, whose fur is either torn out while they’re still fully conscious or shorn off after they’ve been electrocuted or their necks have been broken,” said Yvonne Taylor, PETA UK’s Vice President of Corporate Projects . “We applaud Kering’s compassionate decision and urge the last remaining brands that still sell angora to follow its lead.”

What is Angora, and why is it controversial?

Angora is the long hair of the fluffy Angora rabbit, and is harvested to be used in clothing items like hats, sweaters and scarves. Demand for the fur has resulted in the mass farming of angora rabbits, which animal welfare organizations say causes the animals pain and suffering.

A PETA Asia investigator visited almost a dozen rabbit farms in China, which is the source of 90 percent of the world’s angora, and reported that rabbits were found screaming in pain and terror as workers harvested their fur.

During the production process, rabbits’ feet are tightly bound, and then the animals are suspended in the air or stretched across boards. PETA says the rabbits who are sheared are inevitably wounded by the sharp cutting tools as they struggle desperately to escape. Because rabbits are prey animals, they become terrified very easily and fear being picked up, and they’re prone to heart attacks in stressful situations. One farmer told PETA that 60 percent of the rabbits die after only one to two years.

An angora rabbit pictured on a farm in China. Credit: PETA

Is the future of fashion animal-free?

Kering joins a long list of more than 400 brands and retailers, including Armani, Burberry, Chloé, Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino, and Lacoste, that have already banned angora.

The trend in phasing out the use of animal skins for fashion has accelerated in recent years with many leading fashion houses banning the likes of fur and exotic skins like alligator, snake, and kangaroo.

This in turn has inspired a wave of new and innovative materials, including the likes of mushroom leather and plant wool. Such animal-free biomaterials are positioned as the future of fashion, as they are said to offer a more sustainable and ethical solution to the production of traditional animal-based materials. Around $2.3bn has been invested in the animal-free biomaterials space since 2015, according to the nonprofit organization Material Innovation Initiative.

“There’s competition among brands now as to who is the best on animal welfare,” PJ Smith, Fashion Policy Director at Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), explained recently on the prominence of animal-free fashion. “Companies are starting to see that they can do well by doing good. They might ban fur first and take additional steps in the future, phasing out exotic skins, angora and down, while investing in next-generation plant-based materials like mycelium.”

Learn more about the world of sustainable and compassionate fashion with our Ultimate Guide To Vegan Fabrics.

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