It’s no secret that food waste is a huge pollutant to the environment, not to mention a waste of energy and resources. Today, an estimated one-third of all the food produced in the world goes to waste.
It’s been estimated that if food waste was a country, it would be the third highest emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations.
That may be the case, but what’s being done with all that waste?
Innovative and entrepreneurial companies are rising from the ashes to tackle the issue and turn waste into sustainable fashion. Below are some of the businesses transforming the fashion space, one piece of mouldy fruit at a time.
ALT TEX
Short for “alternative textiles”, ALT TEX is a start-up creating circular, biodegradable textiles from food waste. Their aim is to replace polyester, which currently is forecast to exceed 92 million tons of production in the next 10 years – an increase of 47%. ALT TEX and other start-ups with the same circular agenda could help to decrease this production.
Peelsphere
Peelsphere is a circular material made from fruit waste and algae through advanced material engineering. It is created by reusing fruit waste and acts as an alternative to synthetic leather. Studies have shown as much as 20% to 35% of all primary source microplastics are from synthetic clothing.
So how does it work?
Food waste contains renewable sources of diverse biopolymers such as cellulose, lignin and pectin, which can be turned into fibres for making clothes. Today a wide range of agricultural waste and food waste can be used as the raw material to create your next t-shirt or handbag. These could come from:
- Fruit peel
- Seed oil & plant stalks
- Biogas – derived from the decomposition of organic waste
The future for fashion certainly looks much brighter already, with the potential to shift from a polluting industry to a restorative one.