Interview

Cradle to Cradle Certified is the leading multi-attribute standard used globally for more than a decade for designing and making products that enable a healthy, equitable and sustainable future, according to the world’s most advanced science-based measures. texfash.com in conversation with Nienke Steen, Global Lead—Apparel, Textile and Footwear, Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute.

The Bangladesh textiles industry before and after the Rana Plaza disaster is a different story. While earlier the focus was on capacity building of management teams on productivity, quality, and HR systems aimed at worker welfare, after the mishap the highlight was that the responsibility of making a factory safe does not rest with only the safety or compliance officer. Dr Rajesh Bheda, CEO and Managing Director, Rajesh Bheda Consulting, shares with texfash.com his observations.

The times they are a changing and Bangladesh continues to adopt advanced apparel manufacturing technology. Undoubtedly, if this country wishes to remain competitive at this critical juncture of its journey, the apparel sector needs to take the lead in innovation, exhorts Abdullah Hil Rakib, Director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association.

As the textile-apparel-fashion industry oscillates from greenwashing to greenhushing and greenblushing, a critical component of the backend is the dye. While it is becoming increasingly critical for manufacturers to shift to natural dyes, what also needs to be done is make them as popular as their synthetic counterparts and educate the customer about their basic goodness, mechanise dyeing and grow more raw materials so as to reduce the cost of the dyed product.

While the world scours for makers of natural dyes, here’s someone in India quietly greening the planet one step at a time in a low volume, high value business. The textile-apparel-fashion industry may stand up and take note, not just to source earth-friendly dyes but also pitch in with funding to help them do more for the people and the environment. texfash.com talks to the Co-Founder-Director of BioDye India Pvt Ltd, Dr Bosco MA Henriques, to bring you his voice from the Konkan region of the Western Ghats.

With emerging risks, the demands for functionality and performance from clothing will evolve continuously and spontaneously, and both technology-forward and market-back innovations will come up. Besides, the requirements of consumers are getting more and more diversified. All these issues will drive advances in R&D. Three renowned academicians at the ongoing International Conference on Functional Textiles and Clothing in New Delhi discuss at length.

With the market for functional clothing forecast to reach $244.6 billion by 2025, driven to a large extent by the COVID-19 pandemic, the upcoming International Conference on Functional Textiles and Clothing (FTC) scheduled for 10 February 2023 is expected to see presentation of some pathbreaking research. This edition of the meet will focus on recycling and circularity challenges in design, manufacturing and supply chain in this category. Prof Sanjay Gupta, Vice-Chancellor of the World University of Design (WUD), under the aegis of which the conference is being held, talks to texfash.com.

Blackwashed much, leather is standing up as a material which is irrefutably a by-product of food production and could well be a waste on a huge scale of a natural material which instead is turned into something useful for society.

The Leather Manifesto was a call to action not just for the COP27 delegates themselves, but for all in the space of sustainable materials production.  As a natural material that is long-lasting, can be repaired or repurposed and at end of life will biodegrade, leather needs to be part of wider discussions towards a circular economy. This industry will continue to push the point that it can be part of the climate solution.

As the leather industry grapples with the question of how it can sustainably play its part to meet ambitious climate and other targets set at a global scale, it is imperative that individual companies in the supply chain focus their efforts in a way that is highly localised to their specific circumstances.