SEAQUAL ™ - The fibre created from marine plastic waste

While products made of plastics have penetrated all areas of our lives, from toys to household and kitchen items to packaging and many, many more, today sadly, much of plastics are also found discarded in the sea or washed up on shores and beaches, and plastic pollution affects marine life, eco systems and even our health. 

While recent research reveals that plastic at sea turns into toxic fish food and harm marine life and the environment, plastics floating in the oceanic accumulation zones, known as ‘garbage patches’, carry chemical pollutants whose levels seem high enough to pose a health risk to organisms that ingest them.  It is also estimated that 8 million tonnes a year of detritus end up as sea sludge, 80% of which sinks to the bottom.

Recognising that urgent action is required quickly to tackle marine plastics pollution, a Spanish company of textile fibres has recently unveiled its commitments to initiate a new eco-friendly yarns called SEAQUAL ™ filament yarn made out of plastic waste retrieved from the ocean.

From plastic waste to filament yarns.
Photo © Lucia Carpio 2018

Seaqual 4U’s ingenious plan is to dredge then upcycle plastics from the bottom of the sea and turn them into fibres and yarns.  The company partners with some 400 fishing boats off Spanish coasts that help it to collect the plastic waste.

The company has thus set up a virtuous chain involving various stakeholders in the textile industry including spinners, weavers and brands.

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