HANNAH THOMAS
High street shops - including Edinburgh Woollen Mill - are selling animal fur falsely labelled as fake, an investigation by the RSPCA discovered.
Even conscientious shoppers may mistakenly purchase real fur products as a result of poor labelling, the charity warned. The "mystery shopper" survey by the RSPCA in an English town discovered fur products in two stores - Edinburgh Woollen Mill and TK Maxx.
Laboratory analysis of a DKNY coat bought from TK Maxx labelled as polyester and nylon revealed its trim was made from Arctic fox fur. Similarly, a pair of gloves from an Edinburgh Woollen Mill store were found to have rabbit fur cuffs even though the label stated them to be acrylic.
David Read, marketing manager of Edinburgh Woollen Mill, admitted the company was aware of the fur trim. He said trading standards rules did not require the fur to be labelled on the gloves, but said it had now been changed and products were being "phased out".
He said: "We have one product outstanding in the business with a rabbit fur trim which we have had confirmed by our supplier is a by-product of the food industry. It is our clear intention to have no fur in the range from spring.
"Our labelling follows UK legislative requirements as a minimum. Although this is not required in respect of the glove, the label has been amended to include rabbit fur." However, charities claimed clear labelling was vital for customers to make an informed choice.
Doreen Graham, of the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said: "This is very disappointing news. Many shoppers in Scotland take time to read labels on clothing because they want to avoid real fur. Poor labelling is taking away a shopper's right to choose animal welfare-friendly products."
The RSPCA is launching a new campaign called 100% Fake that calls for retailers to carry out more stringent checks on products. David Bowles, RSPCA head of external affairs, said: "We believe real fur is mistakenly being widely sold in the UK. Our message is - if you're not sure it's 100% fake, don't buy it."
TK Maxx also acknowledged the mistake and said it had a long-standing policy not to sell real fur. Deborah Dolce, director, said: "We buy a huge range of product from thousands of international and reputable brand owners so we are committed to enforcing rigorous processes to ensure real fur product does not enter our business and all labelling has the highest integrity.
"It was, therefore, with great surprise and regret we learned a designer coat with real fur trim was found in one of our stores. We are pleased the RSPCA has brought this to our attention so we can learn how this error occurred and pursue this with the manufacturer."
A survey of 2037 adults carried out earlier this year found 93% of interviewees would not wear real fur. A spokesman from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals described the charity's findings as "outrageous".
He added: "This is the latest desperate tactic by a desperate industry that knows the game is up. The public treat fur with the contempt it deserves and now it looks like the fur pushers are resorting to deception to get around that.
"Fortunately, many top designers, including Ralph Lauren, Vivienne Westwood and Calvin Klein banned the use of real fur."
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