M&S has launched new sustainability standards for one of its most popular hero categories – denim – as customers say responsibly made clothing is important. In a recent M&S survey, over half (58%)** of customers agreed sustainability is a key consideration when shopping for this wardrobe staple and 75% are looking for jeans that are made to last. The first M&S range to meet the new standards launches online today across womenswear, menswear and kidswear, and all products are made of 100% responsibly sourced cotton, 86% less water* and kinder chemicals.

With M&S selling one in 10 pairs of jeans to customers across the UK, the new standards are part of its wider approach to sustainable clothing and focus on three key aspects of denim manufacturing from sourcing to finishing:

The cotton used in these denims s soft, breathable and hardwearing and is the core material in the denim M&S customers love. The brand uses 100 per cent cotton used for all M&S clothing, with the majority sourced through the Better Cotton Initiative – helping farmers to reduce their water usage (roughly 18bn litres of water were saved through M&S’s sourcing of BCI in 2019) and increase their profits (read farmers’ stories here).

M&S is committed to switching standard indigo dyes with cleaner alternatives that are kinder to people and the planet – requiring less water and chemicals to produce. Nearly 50 per cent of the Spring/Summer range have been made with this lower-impact dye.