EQS-News: Leading fashion company joins fiber-to-fiber consortium founded by Carbios, On, Patagonia, PUMA and Salomon

Leading fashion company joins fiber-to-fiber consortium founded by Carbios, On, Patagonia, PUMA and Salomon

• The consortium welcomes PVH Corp. to leverage the partnership and support the industrial scale development of Carbios’ unique biorecycling process, setting new global standards for textile recycling technologies
  
   
• PVH Corp.’s iconic brand portfolio and product lines will broaden the scope of application for Carbios’ breakthrough technology

Clermont-Ferrand, France, 18 February 2023 (11.45pm CET). Carbios (Euronext Growth Paris: ALCRB), a pioneer in the development and industrialization of biological technologies for reinventing the life cycle of plastics and textiles, has signed an agreement with PVH Corp., to join its fiber-to-fiber consortium founded with On, Patagonia, PUMA, and Salomon^[1]. Committed to accelerating the transition of the textile industry toward a circular economy. Carbios, On, Patagonia, PUMA, PVH Corp., and Salomon collaborate to test and enhance Carbios’ breakthrough biological recycling technology on their own products. The ultimate aim is to prove fiber-to-fiber closed circularity using Carbios’ biorecycling process at an industrial scale in support of the Consortium members’ ambitious sustainability commitments.

During the two-year collaboration, Carbios and its partners collaborate to deliver the biological recycling of polyester items at industrial-scale, including thorough sorting and dismantling technologies for complex textile waste. The existing members voted unanimously for PVH Corp. to join the Consortium stating: “The aim of our consortium is to support the development of actionable solutions that address the fashion industry’s contribution to climate change and PVH Corp. can bring a broader perspective to the project, which is always welcome.”

Carbios has developed a unique and sustainable technology using highly selective enzymes that can recycle blended feedstocks, therefore reducing extensive sorting required by current thermomechanical recycling methods. For mixed fiber textile materials, Carbios’ patented enzyme acts solely on the PET polyester found within. This innovative process creates recycled PET (r-PET), equivalent in quality to virgin PET, that can be used to produce new textile fibers: a major breakthrough for the textile industry. 

Treatment of textile waste and recycling

Globally, only 13% of textile waste is currently recycled and mainly in lower quality applications such as padding, insulation or rags^[2] . The remaining 87% is destined for landfill or incineration. In order to work on improving textile recycling technologies, Consortium members will supply feedstock in the form of apparel, underwear, footwear and sportswear. In 2023, a new line for textile PET waste will be operational at Carbios’ demonstration facility via notably the "LIFE Cycle of PET" project co-funded by the European Union. This comes in anticipation of future regulations, such as the separate collection of textile waste to be made mandatory in Europe from 1 January 2025.

Fiber-to-fiber : circularity of textiles

To produce fibers and fabrics, today’s textile industry largely relies on non-renewable resources, and in part on recycled PET bottles for recycled polyester fiber. This resource, however, will become scarce as PET bottles will be destined exclusively to produce new bottles within the Food & Beverage Industry. In a circular economy, the materials used to produce textiles are sourced from recycled or renewable feedstocks produced through regenerative practices. As well as supplying feedstock for the demonstrator, Consortium members aim to create new products from Carbios’ r-PET fibers produced using its biorecycling process.

“Partnering with Carbios and its consortium members demonstrates our ongoing commitment to including more circular materials in our collections," said Esther Verburg, EVP, Sustainable Business and Innovation, Tommy Hilfiger Global and PVH Europe. “We are excited to support the development of Carbios’ enzymatic recycling technology, leveraging new solutions that can help us to drive fashion forward for good.”

"The Carbios belief is that we can achieve more as a collective. That’s why we rally forces with our Consortiums to advance our unique technology, and ultimately switch to a more sustainable industry, benefiting citizens and the environment," commented Emmanuel LADENT, Chief Executive Officer of Carbios. "We are delighted to welcome PVH Corp. to join our Consortium with other prestigious brands to advance our shared vision of true circularity for the textile industry.”

About Carbios

Established in 2011 by Truffle Capital, Carbios is a green biotech company, developing biological and innovative processes. Through its unique approach of combining enzymes and plastics, Carbios aims to address new consumer expectations and the challenges of a broad ecological transition by taking up a major challenge of our time: plastic and textile pollution. Carbios deconstructs any type of PET (the dominant polymer in bottles, trays, textiles made of polyester) into its basic components which can then be reused to produce new PET plastics with equivalent quality to virgin ones. This PET innovation, the first of its kind in the world, was recently recognized in a scientific paper published in front cover of the prestigious journal Nature. Carbios successfully started up its demonstration plant in Clermont-Ferrand in 2021. It has now taken another key step towards the industrialization of its process with the construction of a first-of-a-kind unit in partnership with Indorama Ventures.

In 2017, Carbios and L’Oréal co-founded a consortium to contribute to the industrialization of its proprietary recycling technology. Committed to developing innovative solutions for sustainable development, Nestlé Waters, PepsiCo and Suntory Beverage & Food Europe joined this consortium in April 2019. In 2022, Carbios signed an agreement with On, Patagonia, PUMA, and Salomon, to develop solutions promoting the recyclability and circularity of their products. PVH Corp. joined this consortium in January 2023.

The Company has also developed an enzymatic biodegradation technology for PLA-based (a bio sourced polymer) single-use plastics. This technology can create a new generation of plastics that are 100% compostable at ambient temperatures, even in domestic conditions, integrating enzymes at the heart of the plastic product.

For more information, please visit carbios.com  /  Twitter: Carbios / LinkedIn: Carbios / Instagram:  insidecarbios

Carbios (ISIN FR0011648716/ALCRB) is eligible for the PEA-PME, a government program allowing French residents investing in SMEs to benefit from income tax rebates.

About PVH Corp.:

PVH is one of the world's largest and most admired fashion companies, connecting with consumers in over 40 countries. Our global iconic brands include Calvin Klein and TOMMY HILFIGER. Our 140-year history is built on the strength of our brands, our team and our commitment to drive fashion forward for good. That's the Power of Us. That's the Power of PVH.

About Patagonia:

We’re in business to save our home planet. Founded by Yvon Chouinard in 1973, Patagonia is an outdoor apparel company based in Ventura, California. As a certified B Corporation and a founding member of 1% for the Planet, the company is recognized internationally for its product quality and environmental activism, as well as its contributions of nearly $200 million to environmental organizations. Its unique ownership structure reflects that Earth is its only shareholder: Profits not reinvested back into the business are paid as dividends to protect the planet.

About PUMA:

PUMA is one of the world’s leading sports brands, designing, developing, selling and marketing footwear, apparel and accessories. For more than 70 years, PUMA has relentlessly pushed sport and culture forward by creating fast products for the world’s fastest athletes. PUMA offers performance and sport-inspired lifestyle products in categories such as Football, Running and Training, Basketball, Golf, and Motorsports. It collaborates with renowned designers and brands to bring sport influences into street culture and fashion. The PUMA Group owns the brands PUMA, Cobra Golf and stichd. The company distributes its products in more than 120 countries, employs about 16,000 people worldwide, and is headquartered in Herzogenaurach/Germany.

About On:

On was born in the Swiss Alps with one goal: to revolutionize the sensation of running by empowering all to run on clouds. Eleven years after market launch, On delivers industry-disrupting innovation in premium footwear, apparel, and accessories for high-performance running, outdoor, and all-day activities. Fuelled by customer recommendation, On’s award-winning CloudTec^® innovation, purposeful design and groundbreaking strides in sportswear’s circular economy have attracted a fast-growing global fanbase — inspiring humans to explore, discover and dream on. On is present in more than 60 countries globally and engages with a digital community on www.on-running.com.

About Salomon:

Born in the French Alps in 1947, Salomon is committed to pushing the boundaries of mountain sports through the creation of innovative equipment that allows people to play, progress and challenge themselves in their chosen outdoor sports. The company produces and sells premium footwear, winter sports and mountaineering equipment, hiking equipment, and apparel specifically designed for all those disciplines. Products are developed in the company’s Annecy Design Center, where engineers, designers and athletes collaborate to create innovative solutions that continually improve the outdoor experiences of those who see nature as a vast playground.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in France, in Europe, in the United States or in any other country.

In case of discrepancy between the French and the English version of this press release, the English version shall prevail

^[1]Cf. press release dated 6 July 2022

^[2] Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017