With the growing need to phase out virgin fossil-fuel-based materials, this project will focus on identifying and assessing viable feedstock alternatives derived from bio-based and CO?-based sources, with the goal of providing a detailed landscape of possible pathways for producing polymers from such feedstocks.

The fashion industry relies heavily on virgin fossil-fuel-based polymers, particularly synthetic polymers like PET (polyethene terephthalate), PA (polyamide), EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate), and elastane. As of 2023, polyester alone accounted for 57% of total fibre production (Textile Exchange, Materials Market Report 2023), highlighting the industry’s reliance on virgin fossil-fuel-based materials despite the environmental concerns associated with their production.

Fossil-fuel-based polymers come at a significant environmental cost and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, environmental pollution, and biodiversity loss, fueling the global climate crisis. The pressing need to reduce this dependence on non-renewable resources has spurred a search for more sustainable alternatives.

One promising alternative solution is the adoption of innovative biosynthetic materials. Biosynthetics offer a powerful alternative to traditional synthetic fibres, bringing both performance and technical properties that have the potential to be drop-in replacements. At the same time these alternatives could significantly contribute to reducing the industry’s environmental impact, they still require extensive environmental and technical validation.

Furthermore, many solutions are currently produced using 1st-generation feedstocks. These are raw materials that are directly derived from food crops or other biomass sources, potentially competing with food production — thus presenting additional challenges related to land use, scalability and ethical sourcing. The accurate assessment of these feedstocks’ impacts and the identification of alternatives remain major roadblocks in the path to scaling biosynthetic materials.

Bio-based alternatives: Assessment & validation are needed for the industry landscape 

The industry urgently needs validated feedstocks that are environmentally sound, technically feasible, and compliant with social and regulatory standards. Bestseller, Kering, On, Fashion for Good and nova-Institute are teaming up to address this challenge by conducting an in-depth feedstock impact assessment. This assessment will map and analyse the landscape of potential technological routes for producing sustainable polymers from both bio-based and CO?-based feedstocks.

“Through this project, we aim to tackle one of the biggest hurdles in scaling biosynthetic materials: finding the right feedstocks,” said Katrin Ley, Managing Director of Fashion for Good. “By collaborating with nova-Institute, we are excited to have the data and insights needed to make informed decisions and push towards a more sustainable future for polymers for fibres.”

“Replacing materials made from fossil fuels with innovative renewable materials is at the heart of our sustainable material strategy. With the help of this project, we not only want to validate and critically examine our material strategy but also find out which feedstock makes the most sense from a techno-ecological perspective in the future. Collaboration with other brands from the industry, the nova-Institute and Fashion for Good in this holistic assessment is crucial for a relevant project outcome” sai??d Philipp Engels, Product Sustainability Lead at On.

The project will focus on three key areas:

+ Evaluating the environmental impact of feedstocks, with the aim of reducing the industry’s overall footprint.

+ Identifying feedstocks that are scalable and compatible with current manufacturing processes.

+ Ensuring all feedstocks meet the standards and certificates expected by both consumers and policymakers for ethical, social and environmentally friendly materials.

As part of this initiative, nova-Institute will conduct a comprehensive feedstock assessment to explore the most promising routes for producing polymers such as bio-PET, PA, EVA, and elastane. This will include a detailed evaluation of various feedstocks.

The project will culminate in:

+ A series of presentations and collaborative workshops, where Fashion for Good partners will engage in discussions to prioritise key feedstock parameters and foster collective decision-making.

+ A comprehensive feedstock assessment report, which will provide the foundation for further development of sustainable materials within the fashion industry.

+ A whitepaper offering strategic recommendations for brands, innovators, and manufacturers on adopting alternative feedstocks in their supply chains, supporting the industry’s transition towards sustainable polymer use.