Major names to trial agro-waste fibres
The technical feasibility of manufacturing natural fibres from agricultural waste including wheat straw, rice husks, hemp, pineapple and banana is to be trialled by a Fashion for Good-led consortium including Bestseller, Birla Cellulose, adidas, Vivobarefoot and others, the Amsterdam-based supply chain initiative announced recently.
The focus of the eighteen-month project, funded by the Laudes Foundation, is on South and Southeast Asian countries, where “untapped” opportunities exist in harnessing agricultural waste streams, the foundation found in a 2021 report called Spinning Future Threads.
Working alongside six fibre developers (AltMat, Bananatex, Chlorohemp, 9Fiber, HempTex India and Agraloop by Circular Systems), the Untapped Agricultural Waste Project seeks to validate and, ultimately, scale natural fibres and blends with the highest percentage of agricultural waste possible without sacrificing performance.
As with Fashion for Good’s recent investigation into waste-derived black pigments for the dope dyeing of manmade cellulosic fibres, Birla will support the startups in manufacturing supply chain-ready solutions, whereas the role of brand partners will be to aid in the testing and, if successful, eventual scaling of the fibres developed.
Managing director at Fashion for Good, Katrin Ley, commented: “This ambitious project explores a new source of feedstocks for the fashion industry that, if scaled, will help drive both the agriculture and textile industry towards net-zero.
"We see great potential for these various agriculture waste streams that would otherwise have few secondary uses. By applying innovative technologies to develop natural fibres, we can diminish the pressure on existing natural fibres and shift away from unsustainable materials and sources.”
For more on turning agricultural waste into fibres for textiles, read our technical editor's feature 'A fresh crop of fibres' in Inside Denim here.
Image: AltMat via Instagram.
