- Worldwide, 1,3 billion tons of food end up in the trash
- Pangaia Frutfiber™ and Plntfiber™ from agricultural waste
- Innovations in materials ensure more sustainability
The global problem of food waste
Massive food waste is a global problem. With an estimated 1.3 billion tonnes of food ending up in the rubbish according to the World Health Authority (WHO) too much waste is generated and overproduction in agriculture means that the food industry has little opportunity to set itself up sustainably.
In addition, further waste is generated, as everything that is not edible is already thrown away beforehand. This means that a second worldwide problem - the fight against hunger - is strongly in conflict with global food waste. According to the WHO, over 800 million people worldwide do not have enough to eat every day.
Frutfiber™ innovative textile development against food waste
In order to generate usable resources from agricultural waste Pangaiadeveloped a new material innovation for their textiles. Frutfiber™: A material made from the fibers of banana leaves, pineapple leaves and the fast-growing bamboo plant. Furthermore, there is no cotton component at all. Because the production of conventional cotton is known to involve the use of harmful pesticides as well as high water consumption.
The fruit leaves used are considered a waste product in agriculture and damage the ecosystem through disposal. However, with Pangaias Frutfiber™, they are now wearable in combination with lyocell derived from bamboo. The material is also biodegradable.
Source & Copyright Pangaia
More material ideas for more sustainability
Pangaia is aware of the beneficial effects of material innovation and is therefore working on further new ideas. With the help of fast-growing and little-used plants such as Himalayan nettle, lyocell from bamboo and eucalyptus and seaweed, for example, the new fabric Plntfiber™ is produced. The production of the plants does not use harmful pesticides and fertilisers.
In addition, according to the brand, a diversification of materials is necessary. Because monocultures, which often arise from the frequent use of cotton, damage the soil and biodiversity. In this way, the brand makes it clear that there could be other valuable resources in our waste.
Further material innovations that are used by the company are, for example, recycled cotton cashmere or leather from grapes. Pangaia shows that to find sustainable solutions you have to think outside-the-box, brands have to dare new steps and implement vertical diversification strategies.
