A €35 million pilot plant has been established in southern Sweden to manufacture a new regenerated cellulosic fibre, which is now in the start-up phase.
The venture uses sustainably sourced raw materials from forests and requires fewer chemicals and less water than traditional industry methods to produce the new regenerated cellulosic fibre.
TreeToTextile, a joint venture between H&M Group, Inter IKEA Group, Stora Enso, and LSCS Invest, will have an initial production capacity of 1,500 tons of fibre per year before scaling up and commercialisation.
Man-made cellulosic fibres (MMCF) are growing faster than other textile fibres globally, with several emerging technologies under development. The majority of novel textile fibres are still in relatively early stages of development, but commercialisation is being expedited by partnerships in the value chain.
Stockholm-based engineering firm AFRY has been TreeToTextile's lead consultant and engineering partner since the project's early stages in 2016. AFRY is working closely with technology, textile, pulp, and paper companies to transform their production towards textile fibres.
