A children’s vest advertised as being ‘100% Australian sheepskin or wool’ has actually been found to contain the fur of two domestic cats, sending shockwaves through Aussie shoppers.
The findings were released by fashion advocacy group Collective Fashion Justice, following an investigation by British fiber analysis firm Microtex.
The incident has led many to call for a crackdown on the sale of animal fur – with some suggesting it be banned altogether.
“This vest has one cat skin at the front, another cat skin at the back, as well as rabbit fur”
Shoppers have been left horrified as a number of fur pieces sold in a Melbourne shopping center have been found to have been mislabeled, with one children’s vest in particular containing the fur of two domestic cats.
The vest, sold by fashion brand Suttons UGG – not connected to UGG or UGG Since 1974 – was made of domestic cat fur and rabbit fur, despite being labelled as ‘100% Australian sheepskin or wool’.
The tests also found that two beanies purchased from Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market had pompoms containing fox and raccoon dog fur – though they were labelled as being acrylic.
According to founder of fashion advocacy group Collective Fashion Justice, Emma Hakansson, this was extremely concerning.
“This vest has one cat skin at the front, another cat skin at the back, as well as rabbit fur,” she said.
Animal Justice MP for Northern Victoria Georgie Purcell said that the seller responded saying they were told it was a ‘special kind’ of fur – which was ultimately cat.
“Consumers could be out there, buying this, and then going out wearing domestic cats,” she said.
Queen Victoria Market said it was “unaware of mislabeled fur items” being sold at the market.
“We do not condone the sale of any goods of this nature and work with traders and relevant authorities to resolve specific situations when they are brought to our attention,” a QVM spokesperson told the ABC.
“We don’t want reform”
According to Hakansson, while this may be a new concern, this issue has been going on for years, citing numerous occasions where fur has been mislabelled illegally since their investigation began in 2021.
In 2020, Consumer Affairs Victoria also launched an investigation into the mislabelling of fur products, which found every product independently tested by the taskforce was wrongly labelled.
“People have a right to know what they’re buying, and to be able to shop in alignment with their values,” she said.
“Every single time we have sent fur for testing the lab has confirmed it was illegally mislabelled and this has been true for years now.”
Ultimately, the two confirmed they were calling for an overarching ban on the selling of fur in Australia – with the issue well past a need for reform.
“I took this fur vest to a meeting with the Minister for Consumer Affairs, and shamefully, it is not the first time that the Animal Justice Party has brought the issue of cat fur being sold in Melbourne,” Purcell said.
“They need to get their shit together and work out who is responsible in order to address this issue.
“We don’t want reform. We know that all fur is cruel, whether it comes from a fox, a rabbit, a raccoon dog, a dog or a cat.”
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