Target bans denim sandblasting

Jeans with the "lived-in look" comes at a price to the garment workers who make them. That’s because sandblasting – the process of weathering denim by blasting sand onto jeans using high-pressure machines – contaminates the air workers breathe and can lead to an incurable lung disease called silicosis.

Worker advocacy organizations such as the Clean Clothes Campaign have been working with industry leaders to change this practice. As more designers, manufacturers and retailers recognize the harmful consequences of sandblasting, safer processes are being adopted. Levi Strauss & Co was among the first to ban sandblasting as part of its commitment to its workers, and now Target has joined them in a stand against this technique.

By the end of this year, Target will no longer carry any products that have been sandblasted during the manufacturing process. But fans of the distressed look need not fret; while Target is banning harmful sandblasting technologies, they will still employ alternative methods - such as hand sanding with safer tools – to result in denim with the same broken-in look.