McCartney helping puts up $US200 million for eco-friendly businesses

London - Stella McCartney is helping entrepreneurs build a sustainable future with a new $200 million fund for eco-friendly businesses.

Dubbed the SOS Fund, the new initiative aims to support cleaner businesses, founders, and sustainable solutions. These include companies in the fields of decarbonisation, food, agriculture and materials solutions.

McCartney has already used the fund to invest in vegan leather brand Bold Threads.

Beyond her work as an incredible designer and entrepreneur, McCartney is a well-known environmental activist, a champion of animal rights, a lifelong vegan, a pioneer in sustainable materials, and an overall cool person.

According to research from Infinium Global Research, the vegan leather market could reach $US89.6 billion by 2025.

Leather is responsible for the deaths of more than one billion animals each year, many of whom are factory farmed, but it is also disastrous for the environment.

Livestock farming uses vast amounts of land. Research last year found that many fashion brands were at risk of contributing to Amazon deforestation because of their leather supply chains.

Cows are also responsible for around a third of human–caused methane emissions. Farming them is a leading cause of global warming. Animal agriculture as a whole is responsible for 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

As well as vegan leather, McCartney’s SOS Fund is also exploring other sustainable materials such as beech wood, regenerated nylon, recycled old-stock fabrics, and partially bio-based faux fur.

Meanwhile, Copenhagen Fashion Week has officially wrapped up a completely fur-free event, after pledging to ban the animal material.

Organisers of Copenhagen Fashion Week prohibited fur from its catwalks. The decision was made in the interests of animal welfare and sustainability. Fur was not used in any of the shows at this year’s event, which have just ended.

The move follows major fashion brands opting to ban fur from their collections. Gucci, Balenciaga, and Alexander McQueen have all led the charge.

The event also aligns with Amsterdam, Oslo, Helsinki, and London fashion weeks, which have all previously banned fur. The move could put pressure on Milan and Paris to follow suit.

London Fashion Week was the first to ban fur on its catwalks. Since then, a slew of events have followed its lead. Finland even took things further by banning all animal leather.