Innovative wood-based products

This chapter focuses on developments in the wood-derived fabrics industry and their implications for the production of sustainable clothing. At present, modern wood-derived fibres represent the only potential source of sustainable clothing. Reclamation from current production (recycled fibres) can help, but it cannot fully meet the needs of the expanding world population. With likely future limitations on the supply of fossil-fuel-derived oils for the production of synthetic fibres, the environmental downsides of cotton, and a lack of other viable alternatives (for example, hemp and soya currently constitute only a tiny proportion of world fibre supply), dissolved-pulp fibres – both innovative and traditional – offer the greatest hope of a sustainable clothing material sufficient to meet global needs.

Related Subject(s): Environment and Climate Change