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Alternatives to Viscose Rayon Made with Old Clothes and Coconut Water

Millions of trees are felled to make viscose rayon, but two new eco-friendly options are being produced at a commercial scale.
Millions of trees are felled to make viscose rayon, but two new eco-friendly options are being produced at a commercial scale.
Millions of trees are felled to make viscose rayon, but two new eco-friendly options are being produced at a commercial scale. (Shutterstock)
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Viscose rayon is a mystifying textile: it goes by several different names and is often marketed as eco-friendly, but it has a checkered past (and present). So there remains a critical question for the fashion industry – is a more sustainable alternative even possible at scale?

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Further Reading

Case Study | Fashion’s Race for New Materials

Brands are pursuing a raft of initiatives to adopt recycled textiles, regeneratively farmed cotton and mushroom-based leather, but giving fashion’s major materials a sustainability makeover still requires billions of dollars worth of investments and deeper, longer-term commitments to scale. BoF breaks down some of the key innovations, the companies leading the charge and the barriers to change.

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