3×1 Denim In Discussion about TENCEL™ Denim
Talk to Tricia Carey about sustainability, and it may well change how you think about denim and the environment forever. As the Director of Global Business Development at Lenzing Fibers, Tricia is a passionate advocate for sustainability in the denim market. She joins us today to talk about Lenzing’s long-standing commitment to the environment and to explain the importance of the circular economy, especially in apparel.
Firstly, who is Lenzing and what does Lenzing manufacture? Well, their core activity is transforming trees into pulp and converting pulp into fiber. In this particular case, a fiber called TENCEL™ Lyocell. When TENCEL™ Lyocell fibers are blended with cotton fibers, the result is a denim fabric that has enhanced softness, enhanced strength, and an enhanced environmental footprint.
“That’s the beauty of approaching product design from a sustainability perspective,” Tricia says. “You usually find ways to improve the environmental impact of a product whilst at the same time also improving its aesthetic and performance. It’s a myth that you have to sacrifice anything to make a product more sustainable.”
According to Tricia, that’s how Lenzing developed its commitment to the circular economy. Lenzing started out making fibers from trees, a renewable resource, and that was pretty environmentally responsible back in the day. They could have stopped there but took another step down the sustainability path. They made sure that their wood came from responsibly managed forests. Next, Lenzing designed a patented, closed-loop production process that sent energy savings, water savings, and solvent recovery rates off the charts. Read more about what Tricia and Lenzing are doing to change the face of textiles by reading the full article at 3x1denim.com.