cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/47520633 > Lawmakers across Latin America are joining global efforts to rein in ultrafast fashion. > > Archived > > […] > > Chinese online marketplaces like Shein and Temu [and their] flood of ultracheap clothing has upended Latin American retail. > > In response, Argentina has joined the growing global backlash against ultrafast fashion and legislative efforts to contain it. The country’s textile industry is pushing for an “anti-Shein” bill that would impose import controls and apply a flat 30% customs duty levy on e-commerce parcels to shield local manufacturers from cheap Chinese imports — a push that has gained cross-party support. Textile trade groups in Brazil and Mexico are coordinating similar efforts as part of a wider regional response. > > “We’re not afraid to compete — but it has to be on equal terms,” said [the owner of a textile family buiness Luciano] Galfione, who is also the president of the ProTejer trade association. “When I sell a T-shirt online from my factory, I pay every tax imaginable. Shein sells the same way and pays none.” > > […] > > Countries around the world are pushing back in an effort to protect their own textile industries. In October, the French Senate passed a bill that will sanction Asian fast fashion companies by scoring their environmental impact. Last year, Indonesia lowered the threshold below which goods are exempt from import duties from $100 to $3, while South Africa began taxing small parcels under $27. In August, the U.S. scrapped its $800 duty-free exemption, meaning even the smallest imports now face tariffs. > > Governments across Latin America are also moving to shield domestic industries, which are highly labor-intensive and especially vulnerable to foreign competition. Mexico recently raised tariffs on small packages from China to 33.5%, while Chile is moving toward applying a 19% value-added tax on low-cost imports. Ecuador began implementing a $20 fee on small packages in June. > > […] > > In Argentina, where textile output has plunged more than 20% in the past year as cheap imports surged, industry leaders are pushing for Shein and Temu imports to undergo inspections verifying that fabrics are non-toxic and environmentally safe. Under the proposed bill, the garments would be subject to standard import duties and taxes. The proposal mirrors France’s new ultrafast fashion law, which adds a progressive “eco tax” and requires labels to disclose key environmental information. Shein, for its part, denies qualifying as fast fashion. > > […] > > Until recently, Shein wasn’t even an option in Argentina. The country’s textile and apparel industry — alongside footwear and automobiles — was for decades shielded by tariffs of up to 35% and complex import rules, a policy intended to protect nearly 300,000 local jobs. But these measures also kept prices among the highest in the world, and more than 35% above the Latin American average. > > That changed in 2024, when President Javier Milei rolled back restrictions, cut tariffs to 20%, scrapped licenses, and raised the duty-free limit for door-to-door imports to $400 per package, from $50. The move unleashed a flood of online deliveries — dazzling consumers who had long been resigned to exorbitant prices, but enraging local textile makers who say the playing field is now anything but level. > > “Opening the economy cannot mean making it precarious,” a press release from Argentina’s Apparel Chamber said. > > […] > > There are also other concerns. Studies show that many garments from ultrafast fashion brands like Shein are worn only a handful of times before being discarded. Investigations have revealed grueling labor conditions in supplier factories and risks of significant environmental damage tied to ultracheap production. > > […]