From waste to wardrobe: the future of fashion

Each year, millions of tonnes of textiles end up in landfill, creating mountains of waste that take centuries to decompose. This environmental crisis is compounded by the fast-fashion industry, which churns out low-cost, disposable clothing at an unsustainable pace.

The New Cotton project aimed to address these issues and demonstrate that textile waste isn't rubbish but a valuable resource. The project set out to bring the entire supply chain together, showing how circular fashion could work in practice for every player involved. Using Infinited Fiber's regeneration technology, the project turned used textiles into Infinna™, a premium-quality cellulose carbamate fibre that looks and feels like virgin cotton.

The supply chain, redesigned

"No single company can solve the circularity issue alone," says Tanja Karila, CMO of Infinited Fiber Company. "The entire supply chain needs to evolve."

One of the project's biggest achievements was the integrated collaboration between multiple stakeholders. From brands such as H&M and Adidas to supply chain partners, the New Cotton project brought together a diverse group of actors. Together, they created prototypes, refined production techniques and launched real-world products, on schedule.

The project successfully delivered on its promises. H&M released an asymmetric top and a trouser-and-jacket combination made entirely from Infinna™ fibre. Adidas, in collaboration with Stella McCartney, launched a tracksuit under its 'Made-to-be-Remade' collection, made from cellulose carbamate that proudly displayed the molecule's chemical structure as part of the design.

Later in the project, when the team realised they still needed to produce a woven garment, H&M quickly adapted. Despite its size, the brand delivered a new product in record time - proving that even large companies can innovate quickly.

Trialling new methodologies

New Cotton also addressed another key hurdle: assessing the environmental impact of circular processes. Traditional life cycle assessments (LCAs) are designed with linear production in mind, often failing to reflect the benefits of using recycled materials. "It was difficult to showcase the advantages of circularity using the existing methods," Karila explains. This prompted the team to explore and apply more suitable LCA approaches for circular systems that had been developed for other sustainable industries.

Equally as impressive was the level of commitment found in all the project's collaborators. "We didn't know at the outset if all the consortium would pull their weight," says Karila. "But their motivation was extraordinary. Every partner went above and beyond to deliver."

A circular future

New Cotton's legacy goes beyond immediate results. It has set a precedent for circular fashion, proving not only that waste can become wearable, but that doing so is economically viable. "This can't just be a charity project to collect material," adds Karila.

By bringing together fashion brands, textile producers and researchers, the project championed circular fashion while generating real-world insights to drive sustainable innovation across the industry.

Project inputs have been fed into EU-level discussions on regulation, including incentives for recycled content and extended producer responsibility. Its impact is also inspiring new ventures, such as Adidas's EU-funded T-REX project, which builds on New Cotton's momentum.

The fashion industry is now at a crossroads. Fast fashion's relentless churn has long prioritised speed and cost over sustainability. But New Cotton's success points to a different future where waste becomes a raw material for something new.

"Small is mighty," Karila concludes. "When companies, big and small, come together, they can achieve the extraordinary."