The crossover of food and fashion is becoming increasingly common, with bio-based textiles making their foray into the new realm of fashion sustainability. The most commonly used biomasses include seaweed, coffee grounds, corn, pineapple and spoilt milk. With a percentage of biomass mixed with cellulose or recycled polyester, one can reduce the impact of virgin polyester and help reduce deforestation caused from the demand of wood pulp for cellulose.

Many of today’s garments are woven from plastic-based acrylic, nylon or polyester threads; such materials are chemically produced and non biodegradable. When a piece of clothing wears out or goes out of fashion, it often gets tossed in the trash; clothes made up 9 percent of all municipal solid waste produced in the U.S.

The European Commission has also linked modern clothing industry practices – often described as “fast fashion,” due to the speed and volume at which garments are produced and marketed – to high energy and water use, significant greenhouse gas emissions and water pollution.

Bio-based textiles means that the fabric must contain at least 20 percent renewable carbon content which includes natural materials such as cotton, wool and silk. The main difference between bio-based and conventional synthetics lies in the raw materials used. Conventional synthetics, such as polyester, nylon and acrylic are derived from fossil fuels , petroleum, natural gas and coal – while biosynthetic fibers can be made from fully bio based as well as partially bio based resources.

The few commercially available today come from starches, sugars, and lipids extracted from corn, sugar cane, sugar beets, and plant oils while various technologies are under development to produce biosynthetic fibers from biomass and waste from agriculture, forestry, and even food.

As stated by an assessment carried out by the European Commission, bio based products and biofuels represent approximately fifty-seven billion euros in annual revenue and involve 300,000 jobs, and will represent a 22 percent  share of all chemical sales by 2022.

National policy strategies have been signed in 45 countries to help the bio economy development as the research field is expected to expand the application of this type of polyamides, which are likely to become an opportunity for the textile industry over the coming years.

Seaweed as a sustainable fiber

The cultivation of seaweed has a long history and its crossover from food into fabrics makes us wonder about the secrets that lie within this nondescript denizen of the deep.

Seaweed as a staple item of diet has been used in Japan, Korea, and China since prehistoric times. It was also eaten in Wales since the 1600’s and it is also mentioned in the Icelandic sagas. Now, seaweed is popular globally and eaten by most people around the world

As per records, seaweed fabric was discovered during the first World War, when textile manufacturers were experimenting with many different sources of materials to make fabric.

Seaweed fabric is made by using algae from the sea. Brown algae, commonly known as Knotted Wrack, is normally used. Wrack is a family of seaweed with many strains that grow all over the world. The process of manufacturing seaweed fabric differs from one manufacturer to the other, in terms of the percentage of seaweed mixed with wood pulp or cellulose used to create the fabric.

The manufacturing process to make seaweed fabric involves breaking down of the cellulose but maintaining its chemical structure. It then goes through a process of washing, retting, filtering and finally spinning to produce yarns which are either woven or knitted.

It is also important to note that seaweed is key in marine ecology in absorbing carbon dioxide, and as a potential climate change mitigation strategy for biosequestration of carbon dioxide, alongside other benefits like nutrient pollution reduction, and increased habitat for coastal aquatic species, by reducing local ocean acidification.

Therefore, as an important marine organism with diverse biological and environmentally friendly characteristics, seaweed is moving across blurred lines from dinner plates to global agricultural practices, by providing food, source material for various chemical uses, cattle feeds, fertilizers and of course fashion with fabric and edible packaging.

I had the pleasure of meeting with Vincent Doumeizel, The Director of the Llyods Register Foundation- Food Program and Senior Ocean Advisor- UN Global Compact to discuss the potentials of seaweed during the UN Oceans Conference held at the United Nations New York in February 2020.

I used carrageenan, which is a derivative of seaweed, to create a sustainable collection, which was to be showcased at the Ocean Conference in Lisbon as an example of how fashion is stepping up in the realm of sustainability and helping Blue economies

During our talk, we spoke about the increasing importance of sustainability in industrial processes – which has caused society and various professions to use seaweed as a model organism in bio-manufacturing, along with the other multiple uses for this marine algae.

It is clear we’ve only scratched the surface of seaweeds vast potential and myriad possibilities. This humble sea vegetable may hold the cure for world hunger and is the future of sustainable textiles.

References:

IPCC

Ecoworldline

Scientific American