Isko brings sustainability targets forward
Denim mill Isko, based in Turkey, has released its sustainability report, documenting progress made at its Bursa facilities as of December 2021.
A major producer, Isko has capacity to make 300 million metres of fabric every year. It has 3,200 employees and is home to 2,000 automatic looms. The manufacturer was among the first in its field to achieve Nordic Swan and EU Ecolabel certifications for its denims. Isko’s sustainability division reports directly to chief executive Fatih Konukoglu.
Highlights from the period include the inauguration of an in-house polyester recycling operation in August 2021.
This facility currently produces 25 tonnes of the recycled fibre per day, Isko said, with capacity to almost triple its output within two years. The polyester is recycled from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles via a thermo-mechanical recycling process at present, but the firm intends to engage in fibre-to-fibre thermo-mechanical recycling over the next three years. In the long-term, it hopes to recycle polyester chemically.
Isko already recycles cotton on-site, doing so by mechanical means. In three years’ time, it plans to have capacity to recycle polycotton blends thermo-chemically. The firm also has a goal to incorporate more bio-sourced and biodegradable dyestuff within the same timeframe, plus implement increased traceability technologies in its supply chain for improved resource efficiency.
Regarding water, Isko revealed that it brought its target to eliminate wastewater discharge forward by five years last year. First planned for 2030, the business now expects to achieve its goal by 2025. This includes construction of an on-site wastewater treatment plant, complete with post-treatment systems.
Similarly, the mill discharged zero harmful chemicals in 2021, four years ahead of schedule. Its own, Bluesign-approved chemicals facility is due to be fully operational by the end of next year, in line with its objective to only use chemicals to Bluesign standard by 2025.
All fabrics developed by Isko since the beginning of 2020 have some form of sustainability certification.
More recent successes from the current year include the company’s realisation of its aim to make 85% of Isko fabrics from recycled materials, which it achieved by the third quarter – several months ahead of schedule.
Meanwhile, investment in new technologies for building a global recycling hub for both pre- and post-consumer textile waste is ongoing, the report added. Isko is “committed to eliminating the use of virgin fibres”, Mr Konukoglu underlined, so fabrics that do not contain virgin cotton are already under development.
The manufacturer also formally committed to reducing its carbon emissions in line with Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) criteria during the reporting period. On publication, Isko said that it has already begun sharing its targets with its partners and customers.
Read about our visit to Isko’s facilities in Inegol, Bursa province, in issue eight of Inside Denim magazine here.
Image: Isko.
