The fashion industry faces serious challenges that will reshape the system in the coming years. Being sustainable is no longer an alternative, but an imperative. Changes must affect all processes and everyone involved. Some are already underway and seek solutions to pressing problems, others simply greenwash appearances, while there are still some effects that still need to be added to the agenda. Microfibers, which are a subset of microplastics, fall into the latter category, and even though they are small, they are no less of an issue.
Microfibers are already everywhere, according to the NGO Forum for the Future, Tackling Microfibres at Source. They’re in our food, water, and even the air we breathe. Worryingly, the latest research indicates that they are harmful to human and marine health. Yet, the extent of their impact is not fully understood," says the publication, produced with the support of UNDP, the UN development agency, through the Ocean Innovation Challenge. Fashion must take responsibility: it is estimated that 35% of all microplastics that end up in the oceans come from microfibers in textiles.
Which Are the Most Polluting Fibers?
Any garment releases microfibers even before it is manufactured. In the production processes of fabrics, for example, it is common to use various washes that release these particles, which continue to be released even after purchase, every time the consumer washes the garments.
Even natural fibers are not spared: although when talking about microplastics we think of artificially produced materials such as polyester, the NGO recalls that natural fibers also release microfibers that can be equally harmful when they accumulate in the environment, especially when these natural fabrics are subjected to the same chemical processes as artificial ones.
Cotton and polyester are two of the most popular materials today (in 2021, polyester accounted for 54% of global fabric production, and cotton, 22%). There is a lot of industry interest in comparing how much these two materials pollute. While understanding how each contributes to the problem is necessary, simplistic comparisons are risky and distract from looking for real solutions to address the problem.
There is much to be done for both consumers and producers. It’s estimated that the textile manufacturing phase (before consumption) releases 1.2 million metric tons per year of microfibers into the environment, a magnitude similar to that released by the consumer use phase. That means that for every 500 t-shirts manufactured, microfibers with a volume equivalent to that of a full T-shirt are released.
What is the Solution?
In-home solutions require changes in consumer habits. An increasing number of washing machines include filters to prevent the release of these microfibers into the water, but there are also simpler systems. Guppyfriend bags minimize the impact of each wash by simply putting the clothes inside. But changing global behavior is not easy, which is why activists have long been demanding that governments get involved.
They are calling for improvements in regulation, for example in wastewater treatment systems or in the technical requirements for washing machines. France already regulates in this regard and two years ago passed a law that will require these appliances to incorporate a filter from 2025. For every 500 T-shirts manufactured, microfibers with a volume equivalent to that of a full T-shirt are released.
How Can Suppliers Adapt?
When it comes to involving suppliers, everything becomes even more complex. After 21 months of work, Forum for the Future has published a guide that can help the industry to get started. The main difficulties are the same as those faced by other issues: improving technological processes is expensive and no one wants to assume that cost.
A normal fashion brand can have between 1,000 and 2,000 different suppliers, and so these suppliers will only adopt new technology if it is viable, that is, if everyone in the chain is willing to share the cost". The publication points out some fundamental points from which to start, such as installing robust water waste treatment systems, and puts the finger on the most polluting processes: all those involving the use of hot water, for example in many of the dyeing processes.
What Fashion Brands Are Doing About it
Adidas
In 2021, the sportswear brand adidas launched its most sustainable version of the Stan Smith silhouette, Mylo, which is made from mycelium. This material is the food of fungi, small interconnected and renewable filaments that extend beneath the ground. To obtain these fibers, adidas uses a state-of-the-art vertical farming technique in a controlled laboratory where MYLO takes less than two weeks to grow.
The North Face
In the same year, the Bluesign® member brand The North Face launched its sustainable collection, Time For Change Sustainable Collection 2021, which brings together several actions that increasingly bring its products closer to sustainability. The collection consists of eco-sustainable products made from recycled plastic bottles. Among the garments are jackets, vests, and parkas designed for mountain activities. These have synthetic insulation that reduces heat loss for low temperatures and are water-repellent.
C&A
C&A launched for the third time its Wear the Change collection, which focuses on the fact that all garments are made with sustainable materials and are manufactured with processes that care for the environment and see to the welfare of the workers who make them. The collection, which has a seventies aesthetic, is inspired by a reconnection with the planet. In addition, due to the social isolation that has been experienced in the last year, the collection also seeks to inspire a human connection that joins the love for nature and the earth.