From the Sector

Eastman Naia™ returns to Première Vision Paris to showcase the numerous applications of Naia™ Renew staple fibers, demonstrating their transformative potential in fashion. Known for delivering luxurious comfort, fashion-forward style, and a sustainable approach, Naia™ Renew fibers want to set the standard for a more eco-conscious innovation in textile manufacturing.

Cellulosic acetate, in its usual filament fiber form, is renowned for being one of the most reliable materials for achieving that signature silky look. Naia™ Renew staple is a versatile fiber sourced from 60% sustainably sourced wood pulp and 40% recycled waste material through GRS-certified mass balance accounting, using a low-impact, closed-loop process. Designed for both woven and knitted fabrics, it blends perfectly with premium materials such as wool, cashmere, and linen to create lightweight, breathable textiles. Renowned for its durability and quick-drying properties, Naia™ Renew staple enhances fabrics with a skin-friendly softness that ensures superior comfort. Its low density contributes to a refined, pearl-like luster while keeping garments lightweight.

At Première Vision, Eastman Naia™ will present a curated selection of fabrics and garments developed in collaboration with partners and brands and designed to meet the demands of today’s fashion-forward and environmentally conscious consumers.

Aligned with its core values for mainstreaming circularity, Eastman Naia™ takes the opportunity at Première Vision to celebrate its partnerships with leading mills in Europe, recognized for their advanced textile expertise and sustainability initiatives. These collaborations support the shift towards nearshoring, helping to reduce lead times, streamline logistics, and minimize transportation-related emissions, ultimately lowering the overall environmental footprint.

Eastman, a specialty materials company and producer of Naia™ cellulosic fibers, has formed a collaboration with Debrand, a logistics company specializing in finding sustainable solutions to apparel waste.

Teaming up with Debrand for collection of the waste, Eastman is using its molecular recycling technology to recycle 5,000 pounds of pre- and post-consumer apparel waste. The process breaks down apparel waste to its molecular building blocks and uses the certified recycled material to create Naia™ Renew fibers — circular fibers made from 60% sustainably sourced wood pulp and 40% recycled waste material via Global Recycled Standard-certified mass balance.

Eastman and Debrand are showcasing the transformative potential of molecular recycling technology to address the textile waste crisis. By providing more circular solutions for apparel waste, this partnership sets a new standard for sustainable practices in the fashion industry. Prior to its collaboration with Eastman, Debrand secured a strategic investment from Waste Management, a provider of comprehensive waste management in North America, to deliver circular solutions across the U.S. and Canada.

Eastman continues to partner with strategic brands and organizations to drive innovation and enhance the infrastructure for a circular economy in the textiles industry. Recently, Eastman teamed up with Patagonia to recycle 8,000 pounds of its unusable apparel.

Eastman Naia™ Renew cellulosic fiber received Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certification on December 13. This certifies Naia™ Renew recycled content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices, and chemical restrictions.

Textile Exchange, a global non-profit for sustainable change in the fashion and textile industry, manages the GRS certification process. Certification is achieved through an audit from independent third-party certifying body SCS Global Services and applies to the full supply chain and addresses traceability, environmental principles, social requirements, chemical content and labeling.

"We’re honored to add GRS certification to our list of Naia™ certifications that support our sustainability goals,” said Claudia de Witte, sustainability leader for Eastman textiles. “Third-party certifications help us build our brand trustworthiness. It’s our goal to make sustainable textiles available to all, and we do that by building trust with our customers and collaborators. This certification adds even more credibility to our fibers and our sustainability story, which we’re proud to share.”

In June 2023, Textile Exchange made an important announcement regarding its Alternative Volume Reconciliation (VR2) policy, which broadened the range of chemical recycling technologies eligible for mass balance. Notably, this expansion now encompasses gasification, the technical description of Eastman’s molecular recycling technology known as carbon renewal technology. Eastman collaborated with Textile Exchange and other stakeholders to educate the industry about the value and contribution of its molecular recycling technology. This policy update is critical for Eastman because it allows the company’s innovative material-to-material recycling technology to be audited for GRS certification.

Molecular recycling technologies at Eastman break waste down into its molecular building blocks allowing the materials to be used in new materials that are indistinguishable from non-recycled materials. By expanding the GRS to include gasification, the global standard now allows for a broader approach to making sustainable textiles accessible to everyone.

In recent years, the textiles industry has shifted toward circular materials to help tackle one of the largest challenges facing the planet: waste pollution, especially textile waste. Eastman molecular recycling is complementary to mechanical recycling and is a solution for hard-to-recycle waste material, including textiles, which are impacted by factors like fiber blends, chemicals and additives.

Naia™ Renew is produced from 60% sustainably sourced wood pulp and 40% GRS-certified* waste materials that would otherwise be destined for landfills through Eastman's patented molecular recycling technology. The certification verifies the processes of chemical recycling, concentrating, extrusion, and spinning of the undyed yarns and fibers.

The priority of sweater manufacturers has always been to select ingredients and fibers that are soft, hypoallergenic, and of the finest quality to meet consumer expectations that their sweaters are comfortable yet durable and easy to care for. According to the recent Eastman consumer study of sweater lovers, the sweaters consumers want to add to their wardrobes are soft, comfortable, stylish, and versatile. However, consumers are very disappointed when their sweaters look and feel differently after wearing and washing. Choosing fibers and materials that deliver comfort, quality and ease of care is essential to win with consumers. Today, these are compounded by the ever-present consumer demand for a sustainable paradigm. The promise of Naia™ from Eastman is exactly to make sustainable style accessible to brands and inclusive for everyone through a portfolio of fibers that doesn’t compromise on quality, comfort, or garment care.

The results of soft and cozy blends between the versatile Naia™ fibers and other materials can be appreciated in the collections of Naadam and The Gap, which this year presented its third collection of men's sweaters blended with Naia™ and cotton. By using Naia™ blended knits in their collections, brands are not just choosing a sustainable ingredient, but also a certified and circular supply chain: all Naia™ cellulosic fiber is produced in a safe, closed-loop process where solvents are recycled back into the system for reuse. Eastman Naia™ partners with Textiles Genesis to provide track and trace solutions for brands. All Naia™ fibers are OEKO-TEX™ STANDARD 100 certified, ensuring no use of hazardous chemicals, and certified by TÜV AUSTRIA as biodegradable and compostable, also in the ocean, as supported by a recently published ocean degradation study conducted by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

Naia™ fibers are designed to create unlimited possibilities for uncompromising, sustainable style: among these, Naia™ Renew staple fiber permits to create eco-conscious blends that are supremely soft, quick-drying and consistently reduce pilling which are ideal for T-shirts, casual wear, sweaters, comfy pants and home textiles. Produced from 60% sustainably sourced wood pulp and 40% certified* recycled waste materials, Naia™ Renew creates the same top-quality fabrics as traditional Naia™ fibers, but with a reduced carbon footprint of around 35% — and it’s available at scale. The innovative cellulosic acetate materials can be blended with cotton, modal, merino wool, recycled polyester, or multiple content fancy yarns. Naia™ blended yarns deliver super softness for supreme wearing comfort in knitwear, and sweaters made with Naia™ Renew can have good dimensional stability and shape retention even after multiple washes. Versatile Naia™ denier sizes can be used in different yarn spinning processes, giving the yarn spinners freedom of creativity for trendy yarn designs perfect for year-round basic sweaters with good quality and a durable look. The unique cross section of Naia™ staple fibers enables designs that accommodate four seasons of wearing comfort.