Research Reveals the Most Eco-Friendly Fashion Materials
Sustainable fashion and packaging are big topics for consumers and businesses alike. Many businesses decide to be as eco-friendly as possible to look after the environment and the world we live in. According to a survey conducted by Deloitte, 32% of consumers are highly engaged with adopting a more sustainable lifestyle, and 28% of consumers have stopped buying certain products due to ethical or environmental concerns.
A new study by Doop Toothbrush has revealed the most popular sustainable materials being used in fashion and packaging at the moment and have spoken to experts in these fields to reveal why sustainability is such an important topic.
Bamboo is the most popular sustainable material used in fashion
A report conducted by McKinsey and Company suggests that the industry will see more research into sustainable materials and technologies and the circular economy. That’s great news for consumers and for companies that can make sustainability real. However, given the scale of investment required, it means nervous times for small and midsize players.
To assess the most popular trends when it comes to recyclable materials in fashion, Doop analysed a selection of authoritative articles that talked about alternative materials for fashion and counted the number of times each one of these materials was repeated in the different articles, as well as their search volume on Google.
Tencel was featured in eight out of the ten press articles analysed, with Pinatex coming in a close second place being featured six times. These are both newly emerging materials, with Pinatex being a fibre created from the waste leaves of pineapple plants.
However, Sarah Jordan, CEO and founder of You Underwear, warns: ‘Fabrics made from trees are fascinating, like modal and viscose. However – they can be polluting and bad for the environment if not manufactured sustainably and ethically (thanks to all the chemicals and water needed). We need more certifications and information than just ‘100% viscose suggesting there is still lots of improvements and research to be made before fashion becomes fully sustainable.’
|
Position |
Material |
Number of times featured in press articles |
UK Search Volume |
Global Search Volume |
|
1 |
Bamboo |
4 |
74,000 |
123,000 |
|
2 |
Silk |
3 |
22,200 |
450,000 |
|
3 |
Linen |
5 |
14,800 |
301,000 |
|
4 |
Tencel |
8 |
5,400 |
90,500 |
|
5 |
Cork |
1 |
40,500 |
368,000 |
|
6 |
Modal |
3 |
14,800 |
368,000 |
|
7 |
Wool |
3 |
27,100 |
246,000 |
|
8 |
Down |
1 |
14,800 |
450,000 |
|
9 |
Lyocell |
5 |
5,400 |
13,5000 |
|
10 |
Pinatex |
6 |
1,000 |
9,900 |
At the lower end of the scale, responsible materials including wool, leather and cashmere were all featured in the articles once but had low search volumes, both in the UK and Globally. This could be due to manufacturers not advertising their materials as responsible or designers not being aware of the impact these materials have if not sources responsibly.
You can find the full ranking for sustainable materials used in fashion below:
|
Position |
Material |
Number of times featured in press articles |
UK Search Volume |
Global Search Volume |
|
1 |
Bamboo |
4 |
74,000 |
123,000 |
|
2 |
Silk |
3 |
22,200 |
450,000 |
|
3 |
Linen |
5 |
14,800 |
301,000 |
|
4 |
Tencel |
8 |
5,400 |
90,500 |
|
5 |
Cork |
1 |
40,500 |
368,000 |
|
6 |
Modal |
3 |
14,800 |
368,000 |
|
7 |
Wool |
3 |
27,100 |
246,000 |
|
8 |
Down |
1 |
14,800 |
450,000 |
|
9 |
Lyocell |
5 |
5,400 |
135,000 |
|
10 |
Pinatex |
6 |
1,000 |
9,900 |
|
11 |
Cashmere |
2 |
18,100 |
201,000 |
|
12 |
Denim |
1 |
14,800 |
301,000 |
|
13 |
Organic Cotton |
5 |
2,900 |
22,200 |
|
14 |
ECONYL |
5 |
1,000 |
9,900 |
|
15 |
Recycled Polyester |
5 |
720 |
5,400 |
|
16 |
Recycled Cotton |
5 |
480 |
2,900 |
|
17 |
Viscose |
1 |
14,800 |
20,1000 |
|
18 |
Organic-Linen |
4 |
210 |
1,300 |
|
19 |
Hemp |
4 |
0 |
0 |
|
20 |
Organic Hemp |
4 |
0 |
0 |
|
21 |
Cupro |
3 |
2,600 |
27,100 |
|
22 |
Rayon |
1 |
5,400 |
165,000 |
|
23 |
Qmonos |
3 |
50 |
720 |
|
24 |
Merino Wool |
1 |
12,100 |
74,000 |
|
25 |
Alpaca Wool |
2 |
2,900 |
12,100 |
|
26 |
Chitosan |
1 |
2,400 |
90,500 |
|
27 |
EcoVero |
2 |
590 |
6,600 |
|
28 |
Recycled Nylon |
2 |
260 |
1,600 |
|
29 |
QMilk |
2 |
40 |
1,300 |
|
30 |
Squids ink |
1 |
2,900 |
27,100 |
|
31 |
Ramie |
1 |
1,000 |
27,100 |
|
32 |
Fruit Leathers |
1 |
1,300 |
22,200 |
|
33 |
Sheep Wool |
1 |
1,600 |
18,100 |
|
34 |
Spider Silk |
1 |
1,600 |
18,100 |
|
35 |
Recycled Textile |
1 |
2,400 |
9,900 |
|
36 |
Natural Rubber |
1 |
880 |
14,800 |
|
37 |
Orange Fiber |
1 |
480 |
14,800 |
|
38 |
Vegetable Tanned Leather |
1 |
590 |
6,600 |
|
39 |
S.Cafe |
1 |
110 |
5,400 |
|
40 |
Peace Silk |
1 |
390 |
1,900 |
|
41 |
Yak Wool |
1 |
320 |
2,400 |
|
42 |
Apple Leather |
1 |
320 |
1,900 |
|
43 |
Seacell |
1 |
210 |
2,900 |
|
44 |
Recycled Wool |
1 |
320 |
1,300 |
|
45 |
Better Cotton |
1 |
90 |
1,600 |
|
46 |
Bamboo Lyocell |
1 |
70 |
1,000 |
|
47 |
Scoby Leather |
1 |
70 |
880 |
|
48 |
Organic Bamboo |
1 |
50 |
480 |
|
49 |
Sustainable Viscose |
1 |
50 |
260 |
|
50 |
Wood Pulp Fiber |
1 |
10 |
210 |
|
51 |
Brewed Protein |
1 |
10 |
170 |
|
52 |
Responsible Down |
1 |
10 |
170 |
|
53 |
Responsible Wool |
1 |
10 |
110 |
|
54 |
Responsible Leather |
1 |
10 |
50 |
|
55 |
Corkshell |
1 |
10 |
40 |
|
56 |
Woocoa |
1 |
10 |
30 |
|
57 |
Responsible Cashmere |
1 |
10 |
20 |
These are the ways our experts say consumers can make their wardrobe more sustainable:
-
Buy second hand.
-
Choose natural fabrics such as wool, silk and cashmere, which decompose at the end of life and don’t shed micro-plastic fibres when washed.
-
When necessary for performance, such as buying sportswear, shop for synthetic textiles made from recycled fibres.
-
Select purchases based on long-term personal style rather than to fit a fashion trend.
-
Wear what is already in your wardrobe or try and upcycle what you currently own.
-
Swap clothes with friends or family with similar tastes and give clothes a new lease of life.
-
If you are buying new clothes, look to small, sustainable businesses that are transparent and doing good in the world.
