Biodegradable Synthetics
Last week I had a message from a friend asking for my thoughts on biodegradable fabrics. You’d be forgiven for thinking they are the next big thing if you’ve attended a fabric trade show in the last couple of months. Even though my eyes are always on Performance Days or Ispo for the main themes of the next few years. Which I suppose makes the first question: is it sustainable? And off the back of reports last week that recycled polyester fraud is now widespread in our supply chains; can we be sure it does what we’re promised?
Firstly, what does biodegradable fabric mean? I don’t know the ins and outs so I am going to refer to my colleague Dr Ashley Holding at Circuvate. “These are conventional synthetic fibres which have an additive added that speeds up anaerobic degradation in landfill conditions”. Anaerobic degradation is the process where bacteria breaks down matter into biogas and water. However, tests have shown that most do not fully degrade and some plastic residue is left. From a physics perspective, you never really fully get to zero. If you follow me on Instagram I use a lot of images of Albert Einstein ballroom dancing to illustrate this point! Dr Holding also points out that these resins “facilitates the release of non-biogenic carbon in the atmosphere, which under anaerobic conditions is mostly methane, a potent greenhouse gas”. Don’t worry, I had to google all that too. And if you’ve been paying attention to COP26 you’ll know that the EU and US have made a pledge to slash methane emissions by 2030. Although how the UK government plan on doing that we haven’t seen actual details. This is relevant and the 3 largest emitters are agriculture, landfill and oil / gas extraction.
Image Unsplash Antoine Giret
In real world terms though it does potentially have a place. As we ramp up recycling efforts there will be instances where health and safety laws mean that there will be instances where we can’t process used textiles. And that gap will need to be filled by compostable and biodegradable fabrics and fibres. Most notably is underwear and uniforms from a healthcare setting which can’t be processed in the same way as a pair of jeans. We also aren’t seeing encouraging results on a more sustainable elastane. Could biodegradable elastane be the temporary solution when recycled is not available? Dr Holding also notes that making biodegradability claims is tricky, especially in countries like the US. Something that’s likely to gain traction within the EU as marketing claims come under increased scrutiny for greenwashing. You’ll be forgiven for having missed the French advertising body finding Adidas guilty of greenwashing. It wasn’t picked up by mainstream press but you can find it here.
When it comes to being presented with a biodegradable fabric at a fair what do we need to look out for? Don’t be dazzled by brand names, effectively they all draw bacteria to it, it’s how they increase the degradation time. What timeline are they giving you and under what tests has that been performed? Resins will degrade differently depending on fabric. Mesh will degrade faster than a 2x1 220gsm twill for example. Have they tested that on any dyes or finishes? Are they recommending a particular dye and have that been verified through labs such as TUV? In sportswear antibacterial finishes are one of the most commonly used, how will that effect the degradation period? Will your customers forgo anti bac finishes for biodegradable? And, finally, what is left at the end? When it comes to fibre to fibre recycling we often refer to the left over chemicals which are made up of dyes and finishes as slurry. How we manage slurry is a post for another time. My point is that nothing truly disappears.
Once you have those answers, how do you decide if it should be part of your product offering? What message is being given to the consumer if you’re saying ‘once you’ve finished with it, put it in landfill’. Given the global effort to increase recycling rates it does seem a little counter intuitive to give the impression that landfill is an acceptable way to dispose of a garment. And in terms of carbon footprint, using recycled resins reduces CO2 emissions by 70% compared to making virgin polyester chips. When you add in emissions from degradation it can be more harmful to the environment to use biodegradable than recycled and recyclable. And brands do need to be part of the solution in terms of garment take back when it comes to encouraging recycling.
All in there are times and places for all the sustainable options coming to market that are able to balance the environmental and economical requirements with the consumer use. To achieve the best results range and product lifecycle strategies are going to need to be incorporated at the same time as the merchandising range plans for a season. If you want to see how product lifecycle strategies can improve the sourcing and development of your products then drop us a message. If nothing else, stay cynical!
