Materials of the Future

With an increase in garment consumption of 60% between 2000 and 2014, the growing use of materials is negatively impacting the environment, with 85% of textiles ending up in dump sites across the world. This is all part of the concept of the fast fashion industry, which accounts for 10% of global pollution and is the second largest industrial polluter.

Every year over 27 million tons of cotton are produced; equating to 27 t-shirts per person. Extensive cotton cultivation causes deforestation, soil erosion, and degradation. Furthermore, the excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers leads to water contamination (due to runoff), decreasing the health of biodiversity in surrounding ecosystems.

Another common material used in clothing is polyester; a synthetic fibre created from coal, petroleum, air, and water; requiring a huge amount of energy to be produced. Clothes dumped in landfills last up to several decades as they are not biodegradable. Fibres from polyester (microplastics) increasingly end up in various water systems such as the ocean and are absorbed by its habitants; eventually, ending up in our food chain too.

As companies shift towards a more sustainable approach, new textiles are being created using different materials and resources.

The most surprising “thing” I found that was being made into textiles is seaweed. The production of seaweed as a textile has been around for close to 100 years, which raises the question of why it has not become mainstream. The harvesting method (currently from Icelandic fjords) is considered to be eco-friendly but could change if over-produced in the future. The manufacturing process is energy efficient and has received the EU Ecolabel.

Seaweed fabric is made using algae; adcophyll nodossum. Basically, it is created by mixing the plant with cellulose to create yarn. The chemicals that are used to treat the seaweed are not released into the environment but reused in production. The use of seaweed fabric is limited due to cost and general accessibility as there is a lack of manufacturers. Nonetheless, many still think that seaweed has the potential to be the fabric of the future.

Another material being used increasingly to make fabric is hemp, belonging to the same plant family as cannabis. Similar to linen, hemp is easily produced as a textile and growing hemp has multiple advantages including less water use (approximately 50% less than cotton), adaptability to dry areas, fast growth, and the fact that pesticides are not required (which is better for water systems). Despite its ecological benefits, like most fabrics, there are also some disadvantages to hemp. One of the most notable disadvantages is that the fabric is easily wrinkled and requires more ironing and hand-washing to preserve the colour. Hemp is often duller in colour and as a result considered less aesthetically pleasing by some consumers. It is also still very costly like seaweed and suffers from stigma considering its close ties to marijuana.

These are just two of the many new textiles that are being explored. There are many others on the market such as making faux leather from bamboo, cactus plant, or pineapple; or using the banana plant as a substitute for polyester. Textiles such as these are still being developed to make them fully sustainable and functional within the fashion industry. As research efforts have increased more ideas are coming forth but, the underlying problem with most cutting-edge textiles is the high cost. The shift does not only have to happen in how we produce clothing but, in the ways in which we consume, placing more emphasis back on quality instead of quantity. As these technologies advance and are increasingly available, a decrease in textile production costs is likely in the future.