Cone Denim, answering the call to produce more eco-friendly fabrics, is now making denim with Lenzing Group’s Tencel x Refibra branded lyocell fibers.
Cone Denim will be the first fabric producer in North America to use Tencel x Refibra fibers in denim fabrics. The new Cone Denim fabrics with Tencel x Refibra will be made in Cone’s North American mills.
Manufactured using the environmentally recognized closed-loop Tencel lyocell production process, Tencel x Refibra fiber, introduced in February 2017, is the only commercially available fiber made from recycled cotton and wood pulp. This improves the sustainability profile of denim, while continuing to provide highly desirable benefits such as softness and strength without compromising the authentic look and feel of denim, Cone noted.
“Denim consumers want authentic yet innovative products that maximize comfort, style and performance,” said Kara Nicholas, vice president of product design and marketing for Cone Denim. “They also want to know that their favorite jeans are responsibly made and remain sustainable at the end of their lifecycle when finally discarded. Our Cone 3D R&D team continues to explore and push the boundaries in developing the next evolution of sustainable denims.”
As global populations grow and denim consumption increases, Cone Denim said it’s committed to exploring ways to further minimize the environmental impact of garment waste once those products are finally discarded. Using Tencel x Refibra fibers, Cone Denim will be able to support sustainability over the course of a product’s lifecycle, using fibers for the denim that are biodegradable in soil and seawater, and can convert back to the organic elements they were created from.
“The new fabrics from Cone clearly demonstrate that sustainability and denim are beautifully compatible concepts,” Tricia Carey, director of global business development for denim at Lenzing, said. “When responsible denim manufacturers like Cone Denim create more environmentally considerate products that still address consumer demands, the entire apparel industry moves closer to a circular economy that benefits us all.”
The fabrics offer a traceable pedigree with a fiber ID, providing an independent means for brands and retailers to verify that their denims contain genuine Tencel x Refibra fibers.
