Less impactful chemical treatments

We know that the fashion industry is one of the most polluting in the world; talking about chemicals, it uses one third of all the amount used at an industrial level. Just to give you an idea, it is calculated that 8000 chemicals are used to produce a garment and, and according to the European Environmental Agency 750 of these products are dangerous for the human being and 440 for the environment, causing skin disease and polluting the water that we use for irrigating fields.

Chemicals , for example, are used for the cultivation of the fibres, for the production of synthetical and artificial ones, for the process of industrialization of the product. Generally, it is possible to produce in a more sustainable way by avoiding the use of genetically modified organisms, pesticides, or any other highly polluting chemicals by working with and developing more sustainable processes or materials.

Talking about dyes, for example, the most used in the industry are synthetical ones. They come from petrochemical sources and are achieved through hazardous chemical processes that can be harmful to the human body, and at the same time release toxic residues that are a threat towards its eco-friendliness.

A better alternative would be using fabrics dyed with eco-friendly natural dyes, which derive from natural sources like plants and minerals.

Natural dies infographic, Source: Lottozero

Another less environmentally impactful option would be dyeing with bacteria.

This innovative technology of using bacteria dyeing with living organisms is an alternative that does not require large areas of land, pesticides, or big amounts of water, while having almost 100% of the pigments remain in the fabric. Colorifix is a British start-up that uses bacterial dyeing with both natural and synthetic fibres. They can save much more water and electricity compared to current dyeing systems, while at the same time having a very wide colour palette, being able to instruct the microorganism to produce new colours.