UK based Worn Again, with a vision to eradicate textile and clothing waste from the global apparel and textile industry has joined forces with apparel retailer H&M and lifestyle Group, Kering.
Worn Again which wants to make continual recycling of textiles a sustainable reality, with the help of the two companies, plans to bring a revolutionary innovation in clothing production and recycling.
In 2014, the global production of polyester filament and cotton fibre was approximately 65 million tons and in 2020, the global demand for these fibres is estimated to be 90 million tons.
To address this, and the growing issue of clothes-to-landfill, Worn Again’s recycling technology is the first of its kind able to separate and extract polyester and cotton from old or end-of-use clothing and textiles.
Once separated, the aim is for this unique process to enable the ‘recaptured’ polyester and cellulose from cotton to be spun into new fabric creating a ‘circular resource model’ for textiles.
This new technology addresses major barriers in textile-to-textile recycling, namely on how to separate blended fibre garments; and how to separate dyes and other contaminants from polyester and cellulose.
“Worn Again’s technology is entering the next phase of development tests and H&M and Kering, via its brand Puma will be monitoring the testing of this technology,” H&M said in a press release.
“These tests will aim to demonstrate that the technology may be commercially viable, and may be able to provide an effective solution for the circular recycling of clothes and textiles,” H&M added.
The partnership is presenting a solution to replace use of polyester derived from crude oil, a non-renewable resource, with the hope of providing a new and low impact source of raw materials.
“In the long-run, this can change the way fashion is made and massively reduce the need for extracting virgin resources from our planet,” said Anna Gedda, head of sustainability at H&M.
She too added, “Furthermore, it brings us closer to our goal of creating fashion in a circular model.”
“This collaboration demonstrates how we can design and deliver a solution that will eradicate textile waste while offering sustainable raw material for our brands,” said Marie Daveu, chief sustainability officer at Kering.
Cyndi Rhoades, CEO of Worn Again, said, “Our technology will engage all brands, textile recyclers, suppliers and consumers, in a unified ambition to keep clothing already in circulation out of landfill.” (AR)
