Apparently it’s not enough for Victoria’s Secret to be sexy. Now it wants to be non-toxic too. The company has pledged that by 2020, all of its products will be free of hazardous chemicals.
Of course, Vicky’s parent company, Limited Brands, didn’t just wake up one day and say, “oh wow, wouldn’t it be nice if we just stopped putting nasty chemicals in our bras and panties and little sexy things and sweatpants that say PINK across the butt?” No, its change of heart was less a flash of benevolent inspiration and more of a response to pressure from Greenpeace, which has recently demanded that other clothing companies, like Levi’s, Puma, Nike, and the British company Marks & Spencer, make similar pledges.
Interestingly/creepily, the main compounds that Victoria’s Secret needs to eradicate from its production are endocrine-system disrupting chemicals called phthalates. And these encourage, among other things, early breast development in girls. (Also, births of intersex fish, but that’s less ironic.) No, we don’t think Victoria’s Secret did this on purpose … PROBABLY. But we are pleased it’s going to stop.
