The starting point of the "Liloop" project, which loops linen, is yarn making.
Naigai Textile is responsible for the most important process. We observed the actual process at their long-established spinning factory in Yoro, Gifu Prefecture. We would like to share this valuable experience with all who are interested.
Zero point for recycling waste materials
First, various types of linen waste that would otherwise have been discarded are processed into small fragments. The size of these fragments has an important impact on the subsequent spinning process, so much time was spent on optimizing it.
(Photo: shredded linen waste)
The fragments are then passed through a special machine. This process is called "hanmo" (fiber recycling). Through this process, the waste material is transformed into a cotton-like form.
(First stage of the recycling machine)
This "fiber recycling" technique was originally developed in wool textile regions. When wool, the raw material for woolen fabrics, was scarce and expensive in Japan, used garments such as suits were carefully separated and recycled through this process. As imported wool became more affordable, the industry declined in scale, but in recent years it has regained attention as part of the environmental trend toward material reuse.
Naigai Textile is a prestigious, long-established cotton spinning factory, usually operating in a different field than wool textiles. However, in response to the demands of today’s environmentally conscious era, they introduced wool-derived recycling technology and developed blended yarns (yarns made by mixing two or more different raw materials) within the cotton spinning system. The yarn that our Liloop material is based on is one of these.
(to be continued)
