What may have seemed impossible just a few years ago is gradually becoming a reality. Without compromising incredible design, many companies are exploring the idea of using more sustainable alternatives and creating innovative materials for fashion. Biotechnology, in particular, has been gaining momentum. Here’s all the evidence you need to prove that fashion and sustainability are not mutually exclusive.

Silk

Silk has been seen as a luxurious material for thousands of years. Traditional silk is made from fine threads that form the cocoon of the mulberry silkworm (Bombyx Mori). The threads are extracted by boiling the cocoon, but usually the pupae are still inside. If you do buy traditional silk, choose brands that are dedicated to sustainable and ethical practices, such as Promised Land and SilkBody. But if you’re up to trying new alternatives, buy peace silk or mircosilk instead!

Peace Silk

Contrary to traditional commercial silk, peace silk, also known as “eri” or “ahimsa” silk allows silkworms to emerge naturally from their cocoons and complete their natural life cycle. After the silkworms have metamorphisised into moths and have flown away for further thread production, the empty cocoons are gathered from the forests. As the cocoons are broken by moths, the singular silk strand used to spin the cocoon is broken up into smaller strands that must be woven back together in order to create a premium quality silk. However, there are some ethical concerns even with peace silk, as there are no regulatory guidelines or certifications to guarantee that these ethical practices are upheld.

Microsilk

Interestingly, spiders also produce silk fibres with outstanding durability, elasticity, and softness properties. After studying traditional silk proteins in the laboratories, Bolt Threads have developed a new technology to replicate the process of fibre spinning through bioengineering. The silkworm genes are put into yeast and fermented to produce protein, which is then spun into threads similarly to acrylic and nylon. Stella McCartney and Bolt Threads are collaborating with of the aim of launching microsilk on a commercial level.

Leather

Leather jackets, shoes, and accessories have long been staples in our wardrobes, but we often overlook the animals we derive the skins from. Some of the common ethical alternatives are buying second-hand leather or vegan leather. But did you know about lab-grown leather?

Vegan Leather

Many know of vegan leather as “faux leather” or “pleather”, usually made of polymers like polyurethane. But not all vegan leather is eco-friendly. A lot of vegan leather is actually made from Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) plastic, one of the most damaging plastics for the environment, according to Greenpeace. However, materials like pinatex, made from pineapple leaf fibres, are truly eco-friendly and are game changers for alternative leather options.

Lab-Grown Leather

Although vegan leather is still gradually anchoring its position on the market, the future of the lab-grown leather is already very promising. Modern Meadow, a start-up founded in 2011, has fabricated an eco-friendly material that is biologically similar to leather, but does not cost the life of a single cow. Initially, the start-up used a process called tissue engineering and raised the cells in a serum extracted from the animals. But the process was very unreliable, expensive, and was not considered animal-free.

In 2014, the company developed a new manufacturing process: growing collagen from yeast cells, a protein found in animal skin and also a key component of leather. The process is much like using yeast to brew beer – except, instead of producing alcohol, this one produces collagen. This new process is highly scalable, efficient, and much more cost effective, allowing the company to drive down costs to one comparable with traditional leather. Once the collagen is harvested, it is turned into a fibrous material, which is not only completely animal-free, but also biodegradable like traditional animal leather. It even has the same distinctive smell that animal leather holds! The material can be custom-designed to manipulate the structural and aesthetic properties of the leather – stiff or stretchy, thick or thin, textured or glossy, liquid or solid. This new grown material is also highly versatile, it can be: tanned, dyed, and treated for more durability.

To showcase the endless possibilities offered by this new bio-engineered leather, Modern Meadow has launched its own brand, trademarked as Zoa.

Mylo

Another material that Bold Threads bioengineered, in partnership with Stella McCartney, is mylo, developed from mycelium cells from the underground root structure of mushrooms, also completely animal-free. Mycelium grows as tiny threads that form vast networks underneath the forest floors. The company recreated the optimal growing conditions for mycelium cells for them to self-assemble into a sustainable material that very well mimics animal leather.

Fur

The fur of many animals are highly coveted by the fashion industry for their warm and soft properties. While there have been efforts by major brands to ban the use of fur, or to use faux fur instead of real ones, there have also been new innovations for sustainable alternatives.

Bio-Fur

Vitro Labs is an incubated start-up that works on the cutting-edge technology of 3D tissue engineering. The company is currently developing bio-fur, lab-grown pelts and leather from stem-cells. Although there has not been much information available regarding the company, there are indications of a future for “sustainable fur”. Hopefully, we’ll get to know more about them soon. Meanwhile, you can read MIT’s research on printing hair-thin structures, which could potentially be an alternative solutions for fur.

If you would like learn more about the innovations that are shaping a more sustainable future for fashion, we would like to direct you to Miroslava Duma’s Future Tech Lab (FTL). FTL is a venture company that works with the most promising start-ups that have the potential to lead the transition of the fashion and apparel industries towards a more sustainable future, by maximizing the positive impact of innovation in science and technology.