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STSC have spent over 2 years working with the Japanese inventors of ROICA™ V550 along with our specialized mill in China to develop the CircStretch collection to help combat the global problem of plastic pollution. CircStretch is a vital textile to help combat the growing false promotion that “recycled plastic” is environmentally sound and to try address the devastating impact resulting from its increased consumption.
CircStretch is primarily made from TENCEL™ Modal, a natural fiber that biodegrades in 8-12 weeks. The small percentage of ROICA™ V550, a partially degradable elastane that breaks down under industrial composting conditions, tested by ISO 14855-1, decomposing into CO2 and water. (see below)
While also derived from fossil fuels, ROICA™ V550 is the world’s first Cradle to Cradle-Certified™ stretch yarn, offering a more sustainable alternative to conventional elastane.
(Left TENCEL™ Modal diagram)
We use Bluesign® dyes, recognized for their high sustainability standards, proactively eliminating harmful substances from the start of the textile production process to minimize environmental impacts.
THE IMPACT OF REPLACING POLYESTER WITH MODAL
Replacing 65% polyester with TENCEL™ Modal in our CircStretch #4 and used for yoga pants could significantly reduce microfiber shedding, as TENCEL™ Modal (a fiber made from sustainably sourced wood pulp) is biodegradable and sheds fewer microfibers than synthetic fibers like polyester.
Understanding Microfiber Shedding • Polyester: A high-shedding synthetic fiber that can release thousands of microfibers with each wash. These microfibers are plastic-based and do not degrade in the environment, leading to persistent pollution in waterways and ecosystems.
TENCEL™ Modal: A semi-synthetic fiber derived from wood pulp. It sheds far fewer microfibers, and the fibers it does release are biodegradable, meaning they break down naturally in the environment.
Estimated Reduction in Microfiber Shedding.
1. Microfiber Shedding Rate: Research suggests that a polyester garment can shed between 500,000 to 1,000,000 microfibers per wash. In contrast, TENCEL™ Modal has been shown to shed up to 50% fewer microfibers than polyester, with the added benefit that these fibers biodegrade.
2. Impact of Replacing 65% Polyester: By replacing 65% of polyester with Tencel Modal, the garment’s polyester content is reduced by two-thirds. Assuming a proportional decrease, this could reduce microfiber shedding by approximately 50–65% overall, as the remaining polyester content is now only 35% of the garment.
3. Annual Microfiber Reduction: For a single pair of yoga pants, this could prevent hundreds of thousands of plastic microfibers from entering waterways each year.
On a larger scale: If 1 million pairs of yoga pants used this 65% TENCEL™ Modal blend, it could prevent the release of up to 500 billion microfibers annually into the environment. Environmental Benefits Switching to a TENCEL™ Modal blend would not only reduce microfiber pollution significantly but also lead to:
• Reduced plastic pollution in waterways and oceans
• A more sustainable, biodegradable alternative that aligns with eco-friendly production This switch highlights a meaningful step towards sustainable fashion by addressing microfiber pollution directly.
Our goal has always been to eliminate toxic plastics from garments. We developed textiles like CircStretch to combat plastic pollution, which can persist in the environment for over 200 years. These textiles are suitable for garments like underwear, socks, swimwear, activewear, and more, with a minimum order quantity of 1000 kg.
The creation of CircStretch involved years of research and collaboration with mills in China. This innovative fabric combines TENCEL™ Modal, sourced from FSC-certified wood pulp, with ROICA™ V550 elastane. While ROICA™ V550 is derived from virgin fossil fuels, it is designed for high performance and faster biodegradation compared to conventional elastane. Note they do not fully biodegrade due to the Roica V550 stretch component showing 55% degrades, leaving 45% therefore a small percentage (2-35% of the total textile) will not biodegrade in comparison to approx 100% non biodegradable for the majority of performance stretch textiles that will not biodegrade.
Our fabric R&D prioritises minimising environmental impact while maintaining premium quality and performance. Although the stretch component is small, it offers the best available solution in eco-circular textiles, with advancements ongoing to further reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
TENCEL™ Modal is biodegradable in marine water, fresh water, and soil, fully decomposing in around 8-12 weeks in active compost environments. While ROICA™ V550 achieves approximately 55% biodegradation in 24 months, it represents a significant improvement over other stretch textiles that can take centuries to break down.
Additionally, with innovations in fiber-to-fiber recycling, our focus has shifted from composting as it still is a "waste" to creating circular textiles that can be recycled and reused. Brands working with us can benefit from our expertise in developing circular design strategies and ensuring compliance with the highest ethical standards.
Our Global Circular Network (GCN) partnership enables full traceability through Digital Product Passports (DPP) and washable RFID embedded in a single thread. These technologies support the circular economy by adding each product to a circular economy, from fiber to feedstock, and ensuring it can be safely recycled into new products.
CircStretch offers brands the most sustainable bio-stretch textile on the market, reducing carbon emissions, eliminating toxic microplastic pollution, and providing eco-friendly, high-performance materials for garments worn close to the skin.
Read below then for more information, book a Consultation to discuss MOQs, textile blends and production plus purchase a swatch.
BLENDED WITH ROICA™ V550
ROICA™ V550 is the world-first, Cradle to Cradle-Certified™ stretch (elastane) yarn with a Material Health Gold Level Certificate.
ROICA ™ V550 is a pioneer in eco-circular stretch elastane, which is the world-first sustainable degradable yarn by Asahi Kasei. It partially degrades under ISO 14855-1 tested by OWS, decomposing CO2 and water.
STSC uses between 2% and 35% Roica V550.
Is a combination of high quality fibres designed for longevity plus higher degradability, able to breakdown faster in "microbiologically active soil" in comparison
Standard spandex/elastane shows no degradation or is reported to take approximately 200 years to biodegrade, leaving plastic microfibres dyed plus holds toxic dyes.
SUSTAINABLE DYES
We use Bluesign dyes as they have one of the highest benchmarks for sustainable uses of chemicals in the industry. "Bluesign® SYSTEM is unique. We proactively eliminate environmentally harmful substances right at the start of the textile supply chain using Input Stream Management to minimize impacts on people and planet."RECYCLABILITY, CIRCULARITY
CircStretch blends can be able to be recycled by specific recyclers. By using a RFiD Threads Digital Product Passport, recyclers can use RFID readers to determine the content and add to feedstock showing no presence of forever chemicals.
RFiD THREADS® is the world’s first washable RFID tool housed in a single thread; it is the only bulk scanning Digital Product Passport (DPP) thread that stays with the product for life to collect full LCA data.
BIODEGRADABLE / COMPOSTABLE
The highest percentage of the textile is TENCEL™ Modal fibers that are certified for biodegradability and compostability in various environments. In combination with compatible blending partners, dyes and finishes, TENCEL™ fibers contribute to the biodegradability of CircStretch however it is not possible to be 100% biodegradable at this stage.
TENCEL™ Modal fibers help to minimize environmental impact. The fibers derived from raw material wood. The fibers are certified as biodegradable, and thus can fully revert back to nature.
TENCEL™ MODAL are Certified regenerated natural wood cellulosic fibers. LENZING™ Modal standard fibers are certified by TÜV AUSTRIA as biodegradable in soil, freshwater and marine environments, and compostable under home and industrial conditions. See full details https://www.tencel.com/b2b/sustainability
TENCEL™ Modal production process is based on a highly resource-efficient production technology with high recovery and recycling rates. According to the Higg Materials Sustainability Index (Higg MSI), TENCEL™ Modal has a lower environmental impact than generic modal* in the categories of energy consumption (fossil fuels), global warming, water consumption and eutrophication.
*The results were calculated according to LCA standards (ISO 14040/44) and are made available via the Higg Materials Sustainability Index (MSI) by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (note Sustainable Apparel Coalition Rebrands as Cascale)
SUSTAINABLE DYES
We use Bluesign dyes as they have one of the highest benchmarks for sustainable uses of chemicals in the industry. "Bluesign® SYSTEM is unique. We proactively eliminate environmentally harmful substances right at the start of the textile supply chain using Input Stream Management to minimize impacts on people and planet."RECYCLABILITY, CIRCULARITY
CircStretch blends can be able to be recycled by specific recyclers. By using a RFiD Threads Digital Product Passport, recyclers can use RFID readers to determine the content and add to feedstock showing no presence of forever chemicals.
RFiD THREADS® is the world’s first washable RFID tool housed in a single thread; it is the only bulk scanning Digital Product Passport (DPP) thread that stays with the product for life to collect full LCA data.
SUSTAINABLE DYES
We use Bluesign dyes as they have one of the highest benchmarks for sustainable uses of chemicals in the industry. "Bluesign® SYSTEM is unique. We proactively eliminate environmentally harmful substances right at the start of the textile supply chain using Input Stream Management to minimize impacts on people and planet."RECYCLABILITY, CIRCULARITY
CircStretch blends can be able to be recycled by specific recyclers. By using a RFiD Threads Digital Product Passport, recyclers can use RFID readers to determine the content and add to feedstock showing no presence of forever chemicals.
RFiD THREADS® is the world’s first washable RFID tool housed in a single thread; it is the only bulk scanning Digital Product Passport (DPP) thread that stays with the product for life to collect full LCA data.
THE MAKING OF CIRCSTRETCH
Our goal was to remove all toxic plastic from garments, and so we set out to develop textiles that will solve the problem of toxic plastic pollution staying in the environment for 200+ years.
I started my journey employing an activewear design specialist and we isolated premium performance fibres including Lenzing's TENCEL™ MODAL made from wood pulp with the highest FSC Forestry Standard Certification plus closed loop capture during yarn manufacturing with the industry's highest resource efficiency plus minimize environmental impact.
I then sourced a new innovative degradable elastane ROICA™ V550 by Japanese company Asahi Kasei. ROICA™ V550 is the world-first sustainable degradable stretch fiber. It partially degrades under ISO 14855-1 tested by OWS, decomposing into CO2 and water, and is also a world-first, Cradle to Cradle-Certified™ stretch (elastane) yarn with a Material Health Gold Level Certificate.
ROICA™ V550 is the highest eco-certified alternative to conventional elastane that is currently available on the market.
It is still a polymer designed to give high performance stretch with the highest environmental rating on the market. Our R&D consists of creating beautiful long lasting performance textiles that have the lowest negative impact on humans, animals and the environment. It isnt' perfect in that it's sourced from fossil fuels and with our R&D we aim to use as little stretch as possible and utilising the knits own mechanical stretch capabilities.
I conducted extensive R&D with mills in China and India. Three years later Lenzing and Asahi Kasei have now announced their collaboration and producing their own blend in Italy.
Our results have produced a high quality, beautiful hand-feel soft but stretchy textile perfect for these applications and safe to wear against your skin. We are bouncing back from theft of my IP and clients and we can now offer the start in a collection of textiles I am very proud to have created. During this time Asahi Kasei have released new testing that shows 50% biodegradation ,
With advancements in fibre to fibre recycling I'm thrilled that our benchmark is no longer to compost as that will be a waste of the resources. Mixed blend textiles can now be recycled and we work with brands to create circular design strategies, book a Consultation.
Tencel Modal is biodegradable in marine water, fresh water and soil.* To give you an example in a microbiologically active compost it will completely disappear in around 8-12 weeks. The end of life of ROICA V550 is still under examination. What we can tell you is approx.55% biodegrades in 24 months and remember this is just the small component of the stretch to a garment. What is important to note is that the fibres worn close to the body plus the microfibre shedding into the environment that will occur in all garments are safe, toxic free and and all will biodegrade except for a few tiny percentage of the stretch, and its still better than all other stretch textiles on the market.
Asahi Kasei has updated their research and will continue researching to give greater improvements and new developments are done, but to date, this is the highest eco-benchmark for stretch textiles. Additionally we use Bluesign dyes which is again a departure from other textiles in providing benchmark eco-dyes beyond the simple Azo-free and OEKO-Tex standards.
Note biodegradation will not occur in your wardrobe as the fibers are not only designed to be environmentally safe but also to enhance longevity; the hallmark of circularity.
Request further details about the new collaboration between Lenzing and Asahi Kasei.
I am proud to say that I was not only first in creating CircStretch with these blends nearly 3 years ago I'm also offering another world-first to offer both CircStretch and the Global Circular Network Digital product Passport using the world's first washable radio frequency tag housed in a single thread that will connect with the cloud App.
This facilitates full circularity for any product made with our CircStretch. It will not only capture the product's journey from fibre to feedstock, it communicates to fibre to fibre recyclers that the product is safe to turn into yarn that can be used in products worn close to the skin and even baby's wear.
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