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Investment in digital tech to launch and/or enhance marketing initiatives has accelerated in the absence of in-person trade shows and other conventional avenues of promotion. Along with a virtual pivot, suppli- ers are creating online messaging that highlight individual benefits of living a healthier, eco-aware lifestyle, rather than leading with the science of sustainability and environmental impacts. This holistic approach also applies to corporate responsibility. "The pandemic was a time to re-focus," says Sagee Aran, Nilit's head of global marketing. "It's not the same world, the consumer wants to get more responsible product. We eval- uated R&D and what was in the pipeline with that in mind." Planet Positive Progress As Aran suggests, Nilit made good use of the "pandemic pause" hiatus to work on its corporate sustainabil- ity commitment with new products, production and promotion. The Israeli company completed its conversion to cleaner energy from a new, on-site cogeneration power plant using natural gas at its main manufacturing facility. The move will reduce the company's CO2 SUPPLIERS EMBRACE HOLISTIC APPROACH TO MARKETING SUSTAINABILITY "So far there have been unsuccessful attempts at scale. There is a challenge of the mechanical and chemical processing, and the challenge of growth in the domestic yield. The Chinese would love to find a U.S. partner, but so far there is not enough planted." Guy Carpenter, founder, Bear Fiber SUSTAINABILITY SCALES UP With consumer eco-awareness at an all time high, and the entire world focused on health and safety, industry is doubling down on eco efficiencies and seizing this moment to tell their sustainability story in new and compelling ways. standards increasing worldwide seemingly every day, Palmer stressed that Nature Coatings pigment is a head of regulations bound to come in the future. The first product launch out of the gate to market was screen print- ing ink, but garments using Nature Coatings ink are now commercial- ized. New partners include Boyish Jeans and AGI mills, with pigments currently being tested with major mills located globally, according to Palmer. "The goal is to make it easy for mills to adopt," said Palmer, who added that new products in today's market must be cost competitive, and perform as well or better than what is currently available. Palmer's products are designed for industry, and are compatible with existing equipment and water-based pro- cesses in established supply chains. Hemp Growth When Guy Carpenter was asked recently why hemp is taking so long to catch on if everyone is so keen on the fiber's performance and sustainability properties, his initial response was, "I honestly don't know." However, Carpenter, founder of NC-based Bear Fiber and well-regarded in the industry as a hemp expert, quickly amended his comment to say, "So far there have been unsuccessful attempts at scale. There is a challenge of the mechanical and chemical processing, and the challenge of growth in the domestic yield. The Chinese would love to find a U.S. partner, but so far there is not enough planted." Bear Fiber is currently the only producer of a cotton-like hemp fiber, based on the firm's proprietary meth- ods, and is leading development of an American hemp farm-to-finished good supply chain. But hemp is gaining interest from new investments. TX-based Panda BioTech looks to open a large indus- trial hemp processing facility. Despite a recent set-back when it's initial site in Shallowater, TX failed to pass inspection, Panda BioTech now has eyes on other locations in the state including Wichita Falls. European ventures also have plans to open two facilities in the U.S., according to Carpenter, who said he is optimistic about the future of the domestic hemp market. "People are really interested to grow hemp." Upping Upcycling Evrnu CEO and founding partner, Stacy Flynn, admitted that bringing her product, NuCycl, to scale is diffi- cult. "You're dealing with the waste industry, the pulp industry and the fiber industry – all very conservative industries – and you're trying to get them onboard," stated Flynn in the question and answer session of her presentation during the Southern Textiles Association (STA) Summer Marketing (virtual) Lunch & Learn Series last month. Evrnu's NuCycl technology debuted in 2019. Evrnu recycles cotton garment waste to create fiber formulations with unique perfor- mance and eco advantages. These engineered NuCycl fibers, made with significantly less water and chemi- cals than conventional production, can be regenerated multiple times for reuse. Progress is being made with testing and pilot programs in place, accord- ing to Flynn whose expertise is in sustainable systems and textiles. "We've had to train and show that suppliers can take this on. It's not easy to influence change!" Flynn added, "But when you get partners comfortable with the technology they get inspired. Once we bring this to retail and consumers try it and recycle it, then they will support something new." Evrnu currently has four early adopters of NuCycl. Partners include Stella McCartney, adidas, Levi's and Target. "We'll likely go luxury first with Stella, then the mid-market with adidas and Levi's and then the masses with Target," explained Flynn, whose expertise is in sustainable systems and textiles. According to Flynn another plus is that Evrnu is licensing the tech. She stated, "If you consider that paper pulp mills have idle capacity, our tech could take off." l 42 • November 2020 sportstyle • sportstylemag.com

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