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with textile supplier Amaterrace for shell and liner fabrics to create a fully biodegradable garment. Recycling Realities Collaboration is the rallying cry for circula- tory to take shape, and especially concerning recycling efforts. Textile to textile recycling is in the beginning stages of becoming more circular with shredding systems advancing and pre-consumer textiles coming into the mix. New chemical systems are early in devel- opment. "Fit for RePurpose" is being touted as the design approach for the future. And H&M has recently introduced its Green Machine, that has the ability to recycle mixed textiles. Of the many challenges recyclers face, a major hurdle is that the majority of textiles today are blends and separating fabric made of different fibers is an extremely tricky enterprise. The genius of the Green Machine is a hypothermal process of heat, water and less than five percent green biodegradable chemicals to separate polyester and cotton. The Green Machine project is a collabora- tion with the Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA), with the support of the H&M Foundation, and based on a hydrothermal process discovered by researchers in Japan in 2017. According to Erik Bang, head of innovation at H&M Foundation, the first commercial facility is in Indonesia with a capacity goal of 1.5 tonnes per day. "The Green Machine is available and adaptable," said Bang during an online seminar presented by Performance Days in December. "Now in the prototype stage, it will be good to go in 2022." Bang said H&M plans to license the technology. The first capsule collection featuring the technology has been launched by the brand Monki and includes a gray hoodie and jogger pants. Aside from separating fibers, highly tech- nical garments present a unique challenge. For example, performance outdoor apparel are complex products, making recycling more difficult, according to Thomas Ahlmann, man- aging director, FairWertung, Germany. "These items are considered a real win for re-use but not so good for down-cycling." FairWertung is the German Fair Recycling Federation, a network of non-profit organizations and social enterprises that comply with criteria laid down by FairWertung for the fair collection and marketing of second-hand clothes. The network has launched a collaboration with Vaude to promote second hand goods. Then there's the impact of Fast Fashion on the recycling sector. Alan Wheeler, director, Textile Recycling Associates in the UK, points out that clothing quality is deteriorating and volume is increasing. "The ratio of re-sale- ability to non resale quality was 70/30, but now only 50 percent is reusable. That's just in the last three years," said Wheeler, who reported that the UK has a mature collection system in place, with second hand charities numbering upwards of 11,000 locales; 50 per- cent of goods get sold in shops, 50 percent sold to the trade. Wheeler, who also participated in the Performance Day discussion, outlined the current problem: "During a Black Friday sale at a UK retailer, product was marked down 99 percent. Basically coats were for sale for '7p.' This creates an abundance of low qual- ity goods coming into the recycle stream." Panelists agreed there need to be technical solutions for the recycling industry, collec- tors, and consumers and ways to finance the reuse system that is more cost effective. They mentioned making recycling legislation, increasing automation and implementing Artificial Intelligence as possible solutions. l sportstylemag.com March 2021 ~ sportstyle 23 A single source to inform the market on the latest trends and newest brands. Published 6X each year: January / March / May / July / September / November The perfect mix of performance, fashion and lifestyle. sportstylemag.com

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