The organisers of Yarn Expo Autumn, a sourcing platform to both exhibitors and visitors, has announced that the exhibition this year to held from September 23-25 at National Exhibition and Convention Centre (Shanghai), visitors will have a chance to view diverse range of raw and recycled products to satisfy consumer demand for a more sustainable industry.
As the world has become ever-more eco-conscious in recent years, the textile industry has been no exception. There has been a significant focus and push for sustainable production processes, products and technologies across the entire supply chain. And the Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted even more so, the need for sustainability within the textile sector. Whilst manufacturing and travel paused for a moment, skies became clearer and water was cleaner in lockdown cities as the environmental impact of pre-Covid-19 lifestyles was exposed to consumers, who now expect change following the pandemic.
According to a report carried out in April this year by the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce), over 2,000 British adults were asked about their thoughts on the fashion industry. 81 per cent of participants thought that the industry should change following the pandemic, meanwhile 50 per cent said the industry should do ‘whatever it takes’ to become more environmentally sustainable.
Whilst environmentally-friendly processes are key, creating an eco-conscious garment starts from the source and using eco-friendly, raw materials provides traceability and sustainability from the get-go. At Yarn Expo Autumn, international exhibitors will showcase a wide variety of yarns and fibres made from raw, sustainable materials along with recycled and regenerated products.
Cotton Council International (CCI) will share their sustainability efforts by exhibiting at Yarn Expo, offering buyers quality and traceable fibres from the very beginning of the supply chain. CCI have measured that over the past 35 years, the US cotton industry has reduced its water usage by 82 per cent and soil loss by 44 per cent, through the use of the latest technologies.
“We’ve just established the US Cotton Trust Protocol, which will be our signature sustainability programme from now on. In terms of environmental impact, this system makes sure that every bale of US cotton is traceable, transparent and measurable,” Karin Malmström, director of CCI China & Northeast Asia, said in a press release.
More international suppliers that are answering the global demand for eco-conscious end-products by producing recycled and regenerated yarns and fibres include: Hengbang Textile (Vietnam) – as recycled cotton yarn manufacturers, they will showcase their regenerated yarn and cotton yarn; Everest Textile (Taiwan) – specialising in yarn spinning, twisting, weaving, dyeing, finishing, printing, and coating / laminating processes, they will display their recycled polyester, bamboo carbon and cooling yarns, among others.
