In Finland, students at Aalto University have created a textile filling dubbed Fluff Stuff that is made from typha latifolia. Commonly known as broadleaf cattail, the plant grows a distinctive cigar-shaped seed head that can be dried and used to replace carbon-intensive down filling in products like cushions, duvets, jackets, and bags.
According to developers Lukas Schuck and Tea Auramo, cattail can be cultivated on rewetted peatlands. It absorbs 66% less water than down and dries twice as fast. “Typha fibers are naturally coated by a wax layer, making them highly hydrophobic,” and drained peatlands account for 50–60% of Finland’s agricultural emissions, they tell design publication dezeen. “Fluff Stuff rethinks Finnish peatland management and the Finnish textile industry by connecting bio-based material innovation with regenerative agricultural practices.”