A killer bargain
Introduseres av/Introduced by: Miljømerking/Ecolabel
Who are responsible for the environmental damaging production processes in the textile industry? Can companies or consumers in Europe be held responsible for the unethical working conditions in the cotton zone in India?
The documentary "A Killer Bargain" draws the lines from the European textile chains back to the origin of the textiles fibres. The film concentrates on the production in the Indian cotton zone. It documents the extensive use of health- and environmental harmful pesticides. It also documents which dangerous chemicals are handled in the Indian cotton production and the serious health problems among the cotton workers caused by these. Moreover, "A Killer Bargain" emphasizes that pesticides, illegal for use in Europe, are still in use in India - by workers unable to read the warning notice on the packaging.
"A Killer Bargain" confronts several European textile chains with the findings from India. The film reveals that a Danish chemical producer is responsible for the Indian production of dangerous pesticides. Several of the persons interviewed in the film urge the importance of European consumer demands. The fact that the consumers may influence the production conditions is strongly stressed in the film.
How can consumer demands in Europe improve the living conditions for the cotton workers in India? The official ecolabelling systems of the Nordic Swan and the European Flower are tools which can ensure that suppliers take specific requirements on environmental, ethical and health issues into consideration in the production processes. This would enable us to use our consumer power to force producers to take their social and environmental responsibilities as serious as possible.