Is fur acceptable?

[Anonymous]

Found a beautiful coat with a fur collar I like. But is due still
Acceptable? People are more conscious of such things these days, and it seems like for that reason fur is kinda permanently out of style.

[Anonymous]

Fake fur, yes. Real fur, no.

[Anonymous]

Yuck. No.

[Anonymous]

Are you either a pimp or 90 years old? If not, then no

[Anonymous]

It's not so simple.

People don't realize it, but fake fur is plastic, and degrades in the environment into microplastics that we inhale all over the world. Microplastics disrupt our endocrine systems, leaches into every part of our environment, impacts wildlife, and even though they have only recently been discovered and research into it is in its infancy, they are thought to contribute to inflammation (and therefore inflammation diseases such as cancers). Same for all plastic clothing - fabrics such as a polyesters and acrylics.

Then there's cruelty to animals, that no one wants to encourage. But do you eat meat? Do you hunt? Where do you draw the line, personally?

Nearly everything we do as humans has a negative impact on our planet. It's very important we realize what type and what severity of impact. Killing animals for their fur, while cruel and in most cases, unnecessary (there are some very cold places in this world where fur and skins protects more than any man-made item), does not have the global contamination impact that plastics have on our planet.

So... there is no good solution, unless fur is made exclusively out of animals that were old/sick and going to die anyway, or you're recycling a vintage fur purchased years ago. And try to purchase natural fibers for your clothes and home as much as you can. They are more expensive, hence the glut of artificial fibers on the market. Also, they can be water-intensive, and their culture also impacts the planet. But of all these impacts, I believe plastics will turn out to be the worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not so simple.

People don't realize it, but fake fur is plastic, and degrades in the environment into microplastics that we inhale all over the world. Microplastics disrupt our endocrine systems, leaches into every part of our environment, impacts wildlife, and even though they have only recently been discovered and research into it is in its infancy, they are thought to contribute to inflammation (and therefore inflammation diseases such as cancers). Same for all plastic clothing - fabrics such as a polyesters and acrylics.

Then there's cruelty to animals, that no one wants to encourage. But do you eat meat? Do you hunt? Where do you draw the line, personally?

Nearly everything we do as humans has a negative impact on our planet. It's very important we realize what type and what severity of impact. Killing animals for their fur, while cruel and in most cases, unnecessary (there are some very cold places in this world where fur and skins protects more than any man-made item), does not have the global contamination impact that plastics have on our planet.

So... there is no good solution, unless fur is made exclusively out of animals that were old/sick and going to die anyway, or you're recycling a vintage fur purchased years ago. And try to purchase natural fibers for your clothes and home as much as you can. They are more expensive, hence the glut of artificial fibers on the market. Also, they can be water-intensive, and their culture also impacts the planet. But of all these impacts, I believe plastics will turn out to be the worse.

thanks for the detailed response. I learned something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not so simple.

People don't realize it, but fake fur is plastic, and degrades in the environment into microplastics that we inhale all over the world. Microplastics disrupt our endocrine systems, leaches into every part of our environment, impacts wildlife, and even though they have only recently been discovered and research into it is in its infancy, they are thought to contribute to inflammation (and therefore inflammation diseases such as cancers). Same for all plastic clothing - fabrics such as a polyesters and acrylics.

Then there's cruelty to animals, that no one wants to encourage. But do you eat meat? Do you hunt? Where do you draw the line, personally?

Nearly everything we do as humans has a negative impact on our planet. It's very important we realize what type and what severity of impact. Killing animals for their fur, while cruel and in most cases, unnecessary (there are some very cold places in this world where fur and skins protects more than any man-made item), does not have the global contamination impact that plastics have on our planet.

So... there is no good solution, unless fur is made exclusively out of animals that were old/sick and going to die anyway, or you're recycling a vintage fur purchased years ago. And try to purchase natural fibers for your clothes and home as much as you can. They are more expensive, hence the glut of artificial fibers on the market. Also, they can be water-intensive, and their culture also impacts the planet. But of all these impacts, I believe plastics will turn out to be the worse.

DP, appreciated this well thought out and balanced response. Not a fur buyer but was buying a lot of synthetics for outdoor gear “quick dry” material. But lately started to appreciate the benefits of merino wool. The good thing about these polyester clothing items is that they last long - easily 10-15 years so far. Can see them lasting another 10 years at least. So I’ll wear them until I can’t anymore. But adding merino wool if need new items,which unfortunately starts to get holes with repeated washing so $$ but does not harm the animal.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

I feel like the tide is turning back towards “meh” for fur. As a PP pointed out, there’s a lot of environmental and animal cruelty issues that are much more important in todays world. And fur lasts much longer than synthetic crap. But there’s a ton of vintage fur, including collars, out there for cheap, so I don’t know how ethical it is to buy new fur at this point. I have a gorgeous vintage fur jacket from the 1960s but just don’t have the lifestyle to have anywhere to wear it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not so simple.

People don't realize it, but fake fur is plastic, and degrades in the environment into microplastics that we inhale all over the world. Microplastics disrupt our endocrine systems, leaches into every part of our environment, impacts wildlife, and even though they have only recently been discovered and research into it is in its infancy, they are thought to contribute to inflammation (and therefore inflammation diseases such as cancers). Same for all plastic clothing - fabrics such as a polyesters and acrylics.

Then there's cruelty to animals, that no one wants to encourage. But do you eat meat? Do you hunt? Where do you draw the line, personally?

Nearly everything we do as humans has a negative impact on our planet. It's very important we realize what type and what severity of impact. Killing animals for their fur, while cruel and in most cases, unnecessary (there are some very cold places in this world where fur and skins protects more than any man-made item), does not have the global contamination impact that plastics have on our planet.

So... there is no good solution, unless fur is made exclusively out of animals that were old/sick and going to die anyway, or you're recycling a vintage fur purchased years ago. And try to purchase natural fibers for your clothes and home as much as you can. They are more expensive, hence the glut of artificial fibers on the market. Also, they can be water-intensive, and their culture also impacts the planet. But of all these impacts, I believe plastics will turn out to be the worse.

In addition to this, one must also consider the environmental impact of the production of the plastics as well. Plastics are produced from petroleum, which must be pumped out of the ground. Natural gas is combusted to power and provide heat to the processes in the plastics manufacturing plants. The pelletized plastics are then shipped to China to be manufactured into various products, including fake fur. After assembly, the fake fur coat is then shipped back to to the us for sale. These products have enormous carbon footprints and embedded energy, but all of that is invisible to the average consumer. While many may consider fur cruel, there is no doubt that the total environmental impact of an animal-derived fur coat is smaller than faux-fur.

[Anonymous]

How about avoiding both fake and real fur. Does not need to be one or the other. Fake fur is not good for the earth. Real fur is cruel; these are not animals being put to use fully (e.g., native traditions of using the whole animal—skin, bones, literally every part) they are simply skinned and tossed.

[Anonymous]

I don't particularly desire fur items, but have always failed to see fur as this One Big Bad Thing while eating meat, having leather as preferred material for bags and shoes etc. I also come from the part of the world where fur was historically quite necessary for clothing - Scandiniavia.

Guess I feel worse about the ridiculous amount of plastic my family goes through than any fur trim on a winter coat. That said, I actually do not own a fur-trimmed coat in DC climate

[Anonymous]

Real fur is still out; unless you are Russian or Serbian or something.

Native Alaskan tribes also get a pass as it is how they live and they ate whatever had the fur already.

[Anonymous]

I have my grandmother's vintage fur collared sweaters and coats from the 1940's. I also have some of my mother's vintage fur from the 1980's. I've worn the sweater but feel a little uncomfortable wearing the coats. Since it's vintage, I guess it's okay but I would never buy a new fur.

[Anonymous]

The reason fur went so passe, while eating meat did not, is because the fur was totally unnecessary and conspicuous consumption. I don't remember the details now, but in the 80s, every tween and teen girl knew it took something like 80 minks to create one fur coat. And because you could only use like 20% of their fur to get an asthetically pleasing look, they were basically killing all these prized fur animals for shits and giggles. Because the fancy fur manufacturers were exactly saving the other 80% of the fur for any remnants, and no one was eating minks for dinner. So basically you were killing tons and tons of animals, in a totally gratuitous and unnecessary and wasteful way. I believe the same is not true about food animals, since they get made into frozen pot pies, cheap hamburgers and hotdogs, etc.