#Sustainability

2021-11-25

Fashion for Good Asia builds momentum with new partner, consortium and innovations

The Fashion for Good Asia Programme celebrated another successful year, sharing the highlights of 2021 at their Innovation Fest this week. Continuing to drive innovation across the region, Japanese fibre and textile manufacturer Teijin Frontier was officially welcomed as partner, establishing a footing in East Asia where the programme is gaining momentum.

The Innovation Fest served as an occasion to mark the graduation of its recent batch of innovators and to announce the launch of an industry convening project, Sorting for Circularity India, in collaboration with eight corporate partners.

“We are extremely proud of our accomplishments with the Asia Programme in just two short years; in building a solid foundation in South Asia with our partners Arvind, Birla Cellulose and Welspun and now establishing a relationship in East Asia with Teijin Frontier, who we warmly welcome to Fashion for Good. We look forward to strengthening our presence in 2022 and are excited to collaborate together on industry changing projects.” – Katrin Ley, Managing Director at Fashion for Good

GAINING GROUND ACROSS ASIA

Fashion for Good is excited to welcome its newest partner -Teijin Frontier. Part of the Japanese based Teijin Group, Teijin Frontier, is an industry leading producer of innovative raw materials including synthetic fibres, yarns and apparel. With long standing commitments to tackle climate change in the areas of circular economy, reduction of emissions, removal of hazardous chemicals, and efficient management of water resources, Teijin Frontier is a pivotal partner to the Fashion for Good network of global players and portfolio of innovators from across the world.

After establishing a firm foothold in South Asia with partners Arvind Limited, Birla Cellulose and Welspun India, the addition of Teijin Frontier expands not only the geographical span of activities of the platform farther East, but also the breadth of material and industry expertise.

“We’re happy and proud to be a member of Fashion for Good; to accelerate the environmental innovations together and to contribute with our best technologies and accumulated knowledge of polyester.” – Yukihiro Shigemura, General Manager, Technology & Production Division at Teijin Frontier

Building on the successful consortium framework, the project brings together industry players including partners adidas, Levi Strauss & Co., PVH Corp., Arvind Limited, Birla Cellulose and Welspun India. A key technology partner for the project is Fashion for Good innovator Reverse Resources who provides the analysis of the pre-consumer textile waste streams in addition to designing and running the pre-consumer pilot. The project is supported through catalytic funding provided by Laudes Foundation and aims to build an infrastructure to drive the scaling of chemical recycling technologies towards greater circularity.

Read more about the project here:

https://fashionforgood.com/our_news/fashion-for-good-launches-the-sorting-for-circularity-india-project/

SCALING INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN ASIA

The end of the year also marks the graduation of 18 innovators from Batch 2 and Batch 3 of Fashion for Good’s Asia Programme in 2021. Spanning eight countries, they represent technologies focusing on solutions across the fashion supply chain and have made tremendous progress through pilot projects with industry partners, fundraising and overall product development. Some standout successes include:

MYCL, an innovator focused on providing leather alternatives with their low-impact mycelium leather, partnering with Zalando and Bonprix (Otto Group) to pilot their innovation.

KBCols Sciences, a technology that extracts natural colours from renewable biomass that can be applied to textiles, has completed the first phase of their pilot with a European luxury brand and is now testing dyeing textiles in bulk.

In addition to commercial opportunities with industry partners, the innovators secured various investments to further scale operations. Fashion for Good invested in both Graviky Labs and MYCL, supporting their activities in piloting their technologies with Fashion for Good partners. Innovators Nordshield, Phool and Lucro secured external investments, and Danish innovator Aquaporin, who enrolled in the programme to support their Asia expansion activities, is listed on NASDAQ Copenhagen.

“It has been an exciting journey with Fashion for Good over this year. We received access to industry experts and advisors with Fashion for Good proactively curated pilot opportunities and helped us secure multiple partnerships. The life cycle assessment has been very useful in understanding our footprint in the industry. We are very grateful for this year of learning, exposure and continued support and look forward to completing pilots in the coming year and sharing the learnings with the wider industry.” – Adi R. Nugroho, CEO and Founder at MYCL

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

Closing the Footwear Loop reveals challenges and opportunities for circular footwear

The footwear industry faces one of the most complex circularity challenges in the fashion sector. A new Phase 1 report from the Fashion for Good initiative Closing the Footwear Loop, developed together with Circle Economy, provides new insights into the composition, condition and recycling potential of post-consumer footwear waste.

The updated poster on biodegradable Polymers in various environments has been released

As part of the PerPlacsBio project, nova-Institute has updated its popular poster on the biodegradability of polymers in different environments. The updated version reflects current standards, certifications and the latest scientific findings. The poster can be used to assess biodegradable alternatives for use in agriculture and forestry, and it is now available in German for the first time.

A new standard to combat plastic waste in forests

With DIN SPEC 35808 “Tree Shelter for Forestry Applications,” the testing and research service provider Hohenstein, in collaboration with Rottenburg University of Forestry, as well as forestry authorities and industry partners, has established a clear framework for bio-based and fully biodegradable tree shelters. The pre-standard defines requirements and practical testing methods designed to reduce plastic waste in forests and strengthen the long-term protection of soil and the environment.

Denim moves towards sustainability

EIM (Environmental Impact Measurement), the global reference platform for measuring the environmental impact of garment finishing, presents the second edition of its annual report Denim Industry Progress & Insights 2025. The study analyses over 100,000 real denim finishing processes, providing an accurate and up-to-date view of the industry’s evolution towards more sustainable models.

ATCO Hygienics, Uzbekistan, orders baby diaper production line from ANDRITZ

International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order from ATCO Hygienics to supply a new baby diaper production line for its plant in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The order is included in ANDRITZ’s order intake for the first quarter of 2026. Commissioning of the production line is scheduled for the end of 2026.

Nico Pedretti appointed as Managing Director Graf Group

As of June 1, 2026, Nico Pedretti has assumed the role of Managing Director Graf Group. With more than 20 years of international industrial experience and extensive expertise in Operations, Supply Chain Management, Finance and Controlling, he brings a broad range of leadership and business experience to support Graf’s continued success.