Kelheim Fibres joins bio-based and circular programmes
Viscose fibre producer Kelheim Fibres has launched a new partnership with the European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and Clothing (ETP). Kelheim will take part in two strategic programmes: ‘Bio-Based Fibres’ and ‘Circular Economy’.
ETP is an international non-profit-making platform that aims to co-ordinate research and innovation in the European textile industry.
Both programmes will run for three years and will form part of the European textile sector’s response to changes the wider industry faces at the moment, against the backdrop of an ever-growing emphasis on sustainability.
On making the announcement, Kelheim said the goal was to bring key players from industry and science together to develop a long-term strategy for shaping “the sustainable realignment” of the European textile industry.
Its head of new business development, Dr Marina Crnoja-Cosic, said: “We have been manufacturing bio-based fibres for almost 85 years. These fibres are made from a renewable material, wood, and are fully biodegradable at the end of their product lifecycle. As an alternative to crude-oil based materials, these fibres are becoming increasingly popular in various applications.”
She added that part of the reason for this increasing popularity was the ability to “functionalise” these speciality fibres during the production process to give them the specific properties required for different end uses. And at the end of the product lifecycle, textiles made from these fibres can become the raw material for new fibres and new products.
“In terms of performance, they can keep up with synthetic materials,” she said.
