An upgrade from sustainability

Sustainable

“Sustainability” has increasingly become a buzzword in recent years, particularly when it comes to fashion. Fast fashion brands have integrated it into their million-dollar marketing plans, hiding the irreparable damage they cause on the environment and their workers, all for the sake of staying “on-trend”. But that is the very thing sustainable fashion is not — a trend. It is the key to stopping trends in their tracks before they cost us our world. In fact, it is the bare minimum needed to sustain the environment as we now know it.

Instead, I’d like to take it a step further. Ask not what we need to do to maintain our Earth, but how can we rejuvenate, or, dare I say, breathe new life into it? This is where regenerative fashion comes in.

Regenerative

If sustainable fashion is comprised of investing in pieces that will last, buying less and wearing what we own more often, then what does it mean to regenerate?

Regenerative fashion includes the renewal of clothing already made into something new (upcycling), recycling materials into clothing (note: beware of recycled plastic — it’s not as innovative as marketed) and finding natural alternatives for fiber production.

The earth is full of natural elements perfect for fiber production. We are all familiar with the popular natural fabrics of cotton, silk, and linen. However, there are over 390,000 species of plants (1) and over 5.1 million species of fungi (2) in our world — plenty of other options! Let’s explore a bit, shall we?

Alternate Possibilities

Vegan leather usually refers to a synthetic alternative (aka plastic). However, bio-based materials are on the rise, with mushroom and plant-based leathers starring the show.

Mushroom leather stems from mycelium, the underground root-like system of fungi. Mylo unleather is a pioneer fabric developed by Bolt Threads, produced by mimicking the growth of mycelium in a controlled indoor environment. Following harvest, it is dyed (using environmentally friendly substances of course!) and transformed into leather products, such as clothing, shoes, and bags. Major designers and brands such as Stella McCartney, Adidas and Lululemon have initiated collaborations with this innovative fabric (3).

• Pros: Bio-based, vegan, non-chromium tanning (aka no toxic chemical-based tanning), can be reused/repurposed, not genetically modified

• Cons: Includes a percentage of plastic (with aims to eventually eliminate plastic), not biodegradable

Plant-based leather spans from upcycling food waste to tapping into indigenous materials. Brands like Prota Fiori and Allegorie take the biological residuals from the production of apple juice and transform it into luxury shoes and small leather goods, respectfully. Prota Fiori also taps into local Italian wineries to convert leftover grape skins, stalks and seeds into their products, while Allegorie has capitalized on the high waste rate of mangos.

Beyond food waste, Allegorie also collaborates with Desserto, a Mexico-based company producing cactus-based biomaterials using the strong fiber within its leaves. Cacti are able to survive harsher conditions than most plants, particularly due to their nighttime ritual of carbon fixation and water loss. Not only that, but they are able to absorb CO2 from their environment at a level higher than it is produced by farms (4).

• Pros: Bio-based, vegan, upcycled materials, developed with natural biological processes in mind, vegetable-tanned (aka no toxic chromium/chemical-based tanning), cruelty-free, PVC (polyvinyl chloride) free, carbon-reducing

• Cons: Small percentage of plastic used in production, not biodegradable

Algae

Possibly the most innovative alternative I have come across is the fabrication of bioprinted living materials (“bioprinting” is a form of 3D printing that uses cells and biological materials instead of traditional metals and plastics to fabricate other biomaterials — primarily tissues and organs (5,6)).

Researchers from the Department of Sustainable Design Engineering at the Delft University of Technology investigated the use of algae in bioprinting by encapsulating microalgae within a non-living matrix (bacterial cellulose) using environmentally friendly chemistry. The bioprinted, photosynthetic materials were able to survive for up to 3 days without nutrients, with their lifetime extended by providing nutrients regularly. In addition, they are regenerative and can thereby be reused and expanded with additional living materials. The researchers are confident this application can be upscaled to photosynthetic bio-garments (7).

• Pros: Bio-based, biodegradable, environmentally friendly, regenerative, able to be up-scaled

• Cons: Difficult to preserve, bio-garment application still to be investigated

Seaweed

Beyond the nutrients plants need to survive, they hold a variety of nutrients beneficial to us. From cooking to baking to eating raw, we consume plants on a daily basis.

For example, seaweed may not be prevalent in the American diet, but Asian cuisine capitalizes on the variety of vitamins and minerals embedded in these sea vegetables. Edible seaweed is high in fiber for heart health and to stabilize blood sugar, iodine for thyroid health, prebiotics that feed gut bacteria, and antioxidants for immune health (8). Beyond enjoying this nutrient-rich algae in sushi rolls, is it possible to benefit from these nutrients in other ways?

SeaCell is a mixture of cellulose and seaweed — derived from an Icelandic algae named Ascophyllum nodosum — woven into a fabric designed by Nanonic Incorporated. They have developed two versions; one in its raw form and a second enhanced with silver (SeaCell Active) (9).

The most impressive aspect of this fiber is that the seaweed retains its nutrients — including iron, calcium, magnesium and Vitamin E — which can be absorbed upon contact with the skin. In addition, the high antioxidant count within its layers can help the body fight free radicals and prolong the effects of aging, while the silver within SeaCell Active has anti-microbial, anti-bacterial and anti-odor properties. These properties make it optimal for workout wear and underwear (9).

Beyond the body, the seaweed itself is unharmed in production, as only the regenerative parts of the algae are harvested, allowing it to continue to grow (9).

However, as fast fashion receives word of up-and-coming alternatives, they may claim to use bio-based fibers, when in truth, lab tests reveal miniscule if even traceable amounts within these pieces (looking at you, Lululemon!). Always check the source and read fabric tags for the true percentage of materials actually used.

• Pros: Bio-based, biodegradable, nutrient-rich, environmentally friendly, manufacturing adheres to the Oeko-Tex 100 standard

• Cons: Nano particles within silver-based fabric can potentially affect micro-organisms as they are released upon wash and end up in wastewater, currently in early stages of up-scaling to full clothing production

Eucalyptus

However, you may be asking, what can I wear now? Beyond the usual choices of plant-based products and the aforementioned plant-based leathers, Tencel Lyocell and Modal are more widely available. Sourced from natural raw material wood — eucalyptus trees in particular — these fabrics are soft yet durable, biodegradable, and unfavorable for bacteria growth (10). Tencel pieces can be found in everyday clothing from lounge and sleepwear to workout clothing and jeans. Patagonia, Levi’s, and Boyish are a few of the pioneers making this fabric mainstream.

• Pros: Bio-based, vegan, biodegradable, durable, breathable, limits bacterial growth

• Cons: Chemical toxins and dyes may be used in production (which is a concern for almost all fabrics!)

Forward Thinking Fashion

Researching alternative materials has left me with a few burning questions — does the future of fashion consist of photosynthetic t-shirts and carbon-fixing jackets? Instead of hanging our clothing in a closet, will they need to be immersed in a matrix of nutrients prior to the next wear?

As far-fetched as this may sound, this is the kind of forward-thinking needed to push the boundaries of fashion as we know it into a new realm of designing in harmony with our earth, for our earth is a living being with resources to be repurposed and shared — not taken and exploited.

References

1. KewScience. (2016). State of the world’s plants 2016. State of the World’s Plants. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://stateoftheworldsplants.org/2016/

2. Blackwell M. The fungi: 1, 2, 3 … 5.1 million species? Am J Bot. 2011 Mar;98(3):426–38. doi: 10.3732/ajb.1000298. Epub 2011 Mar 2. PMID: 21613136.

3. Mylo™ unleather | sustainable vegan mycelium leather. (n.d.). Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://www.mylo-unleather.com/

4. Desserto. (2021). Why cactus? DESSERTO. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://desserto.com.mx/why-cactus%3F

5. 2022, B. P. J. 25. (2022, January 25). Producing bioprinting material with microbes. AZoM.com. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=21259

6. Vanaei, S., Parizi, M. S., Vanaei, S., Salemizadehparizi, F., & Vanaei, H. R. (2020, December 18). An overview on materials and techniques in 3D bioprinting toward biomedical application. Engineered Regeneration. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266613812030013X

7. Balasubramanian, S., Yu, K., Meyer, A. S., Karana, E., Aubin-Tam, M.-E., Bioprinting of Regenerative Photosynthetic Living Materials. Adv. Funct. Mater. 2021, 31, 2011162. https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202011162

8. Petre, A. (2021, August 16). Why seaweed is super healthy and nutritious. Healthline. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/seaweed-healthy-nutritious#is-it-safe

9. Charlie Bradley Ross Thursday. (2017, May 11). Focus on fibres: Sustainable seaweed fabric… SeaCell™. The Sustainable Fashion Collective. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://www.the-sustainable-fashion-collective.com/2017/05/11/new-sustainable-seaweed-fabric-seacell

10. What is TENCEL™ fibers fabric made of? about TENCEL™ Lyocell & Modal Fiber Fabric. Tencel.com. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2022, from https://www.tencel.com/about