In the Philippines, three companies developing plant-based textile fibers have created a marketing organization to link producers such as themselves with the fashion industry.
Dubbed the Fibral Material Alliance, the group was founded by Dr. Carmen Hijosa of Ananas Anam Ltd, Hannes Schoenegger from Bananatex, and Ricardo Garay of Regenerate Fashion. Ananas Anam produces a leather alternative based on pineapple leaf fiber, and Bananatex makes a technical fabric from Abacá banana plants. Circular Systems, also a founding member, produces textiles from agricultural waste streams.
“The textile industry is dominated by a material mix that relies on fossil-based resources or fibers that are associated with intensive water, chemical and land use,” the Alliance says in a statement. “In the face of global climate change, there is a growing need for alternative materials as the Earth’s finite resources diminish and natural systems continue to degrade.”