Renee Henze
Global Marketing and Commercial Development Director DuPont Biomaterials
Goal is to be important part of circular economy
Sorona is a cutting-edge 37 per cent bio-based polymer, offering spinners, mills and brands a high-quality, eco-efficient fibre that adds softness, durability and stretch to fabrics without sacrificing performance. Sorona is used in apparel applications including athleisure and athletic wear, insulation, swimwear, outerwear, suiting, faux fur, among others. Renee Henze, global marketing and commercial development director at DuPont Biomaterials, talks fibres with Subir Ghosh.
There seems to be a glut of fibres in the market with each fibre manufacturer pitching in with their own innovations and value additions. Do you think this leads to too much confusion in the minds of people? Do you think there is a clutter of fibres?
For us, we believe collaboration is the answer to making a true impact in the industry. We have enjoyed working with other fibre manufacturers such as Lenzing, Unifi, Sateri and Eastman. We believe that collaboration is what drives the most impactful innovations and results that revolutionise textiles design. It's not an us or them, it's an us and them.
What have you noticed in fibre development/innovation in the last one year, during the pandemic? Has there been anything remarkable that has caught your eye?
I think we will continue to see the demand for traceability and transparency throughout the value chain and that will come more from consumers. In April 2020, we launched our Common Thread Fabric Certification programme to ensure customers are getting the fibre content, performance and quality they expect.
Meanwhile, cotton has been under pressure because of anthropogenic activities, climate change, etc. Polyester is a contributor to oceanic pollution as well as being a fossil fuel fibre. Do you see the world breaking away from these two any time soon?
We are proud to answer the global call for sustainably sourced offerings, which empowers us to bridge the personal and societal demands at a defining moment in our ecological stewardship. We believe we are creating opportunities to make sustainability a reality and demonstrate how you do not have to sacrifice performance to achieve those goals.
Today, in most-but not all-cases, petro-based products are less expensive than bio-based alternatives. Perhaps most importantly, petro-based plastics contribute to introducing more fossil carbon into the ecosystem, which is closely associated with climate change. By choosing bio-based materials, whether fully or partially, based on renewable feedstocks instead, we can reduce the amount of fossil carbon and help reduce the impact of climate change.
In which areas of fibre development/ innovation do you foresee the maximum activity: sustainability/circularity, performance, longevity, affordability?
I think all of these activities benefit the other. For us at DuPont Biomaterials, we're dedicated to finding ways to enhance the quality of life through high-performance, competitively priced materials while progressively reducing the environmental impacts of industry.
Our goal is to be an important part of the circular economy, one in which products are made to be made again, where the system is powered by renewable energy, where the process itself is responsible and restorative.
Given the backdrop, how do you position Sorona? Which are your biggest markets? Just creating a new fibre or innovating on one is not enough. The people (as in end-consumers) have to accept it and buy too. How are you marketing your product among apparel manufacturers as well as end consumers?
Sorona polymer is a breakthrough bio-based, high-performance polymer offering unique benefits for the apparel industry. It is also used for carpeting applications. Sorona contains 37 per cent annually renewable plant-based ingredients by weight and minimises the impact on the environment without sacrificing quality and performance. From flexible yoga wear to denim to everything in-between, Sorona can make any textile look good, feel good and do good. It offers unique performance benefits, including incredible softness, stretch and recovery, and inherent stain resistance without the need for topical treatments.
As stated previously, we were very excited to launch our Common Thread Fabric Certification programme and five new sub-brands. As part of this programme, our team has launched a new brand architecture and hangtag programme designed to bring simplicity of choice and fabric confidence to designers and apparel brands. New fabric collections offered by mills are tested and certified through the DuPont Sorona Fabric Common Thread Certification programme to assure the fabrics have the unique molecular footprint of partially plant-based Sorona polymer as well as meet key fabric performance attributes. Starting now, apparel brands and designers will be able to request that mills provide their DuPont Sorona Fabric Common Thread Certificate to show their Sorona fabrics truly have the unique fabric performance and feeling that Sorona fibres provide.
Besides all this, one cannot be announcing a new fibre every other day. But one needs to future-proof your own products too. How do you go about doing this? Is it even feasible?
We are excited to continue to offer solutions to our customers and hope to do so for many generations to come.
This article was first published in the June 2021 edition of the print magazine.
Published on: 07/06/2021
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
