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Sustainable textiles of the future

In a process called biopolishing, enzymes are used to extend the lifetime of cotton knits and other popular fabrics such as lyocell, modal and viscose. This creates better quality, longer lasting, more sustainable fabrics. It’s a big win for both consumers and the environment.

It also presents a business opportunity for brands to differentiate their products toward consumers. Likewise, it gives mills and laundries the chance to differentiate their products towards brands. 

Whether you are producing, washing, selling or buying clothes and fabrics, you can now get the best solution for quality textiles made in a sustainable way.

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Looking new for longer

In biopolishing, enzymes remove protruding fibers from cotton and other popular fabrics. Biopolishing leaves a clean surface without fuzz and pills. 

Consumers enjoy new-looking fabrics that retain their vibrant colors and high quality, wash after wash after wash. 

20% longer lifetime

By using the biopolishing process, mills, laundries and brands can produce cotton knits that last at least 20% longer. 

The biopolish effect is permanent - even after 30 washes.

Consumers want biopolished quality 

A 2014 survey of German and French shoppers explored the impact of biopolishing on their purchasing decisions. The results: 90% consumers were willing to pay 10% more for their knits if they are biopolished, compared to untreated garments. 

The cost of biopolishing is only a fraction (less than 5%) of the value it delivers to the consumer. 

Globally, approximately 30% of cotton knits are biopolished, and Novozymes is now working to extend biopolishing technology to additional fabrics beyond cotton. So there is a huge potential opportunity for mills and brands to differentiate on the quality of their fabrics. 

The consumer's perspective

See what consumers are looking for in this one-minute video.   

Results of Novozymes 2014 consumer survey  on biopolishing (4 minutes)
See how Novozymes’ patented solution help a textile mill in China to produce better quality clothes that will look as new even after 20 washes.

Innovation in biopolishing

Novozymes is the inventor of biopolishing. Novozymes is constantly working to develop the most efficient, environmentally-friendly biopolishing processes.

Novozymes offers a variety of ways to do biopolishing. One of them is the patented, award-winning one-step CombiPolish® process. The process is endorsed as a best practice by the China Knitting Industry Association and Partnership for Cleaner Textiles (PACT) in Bangladesh.

Biopolishing can also be done in a separate step in textile mills, as well as garment biopolishing in laundries.  

Novozymes’ latest innovation is developing an entirely new biopolishing process for additional popular fabrics. 

In a single word, the Livelong® concept is a way to communicate the benefits of biopolishing. Livelong® applies to all Novozymes biopolishing processes and all biopolished fabric types. 
Novozymes Combipolish®
for cotton knits combines
bleach cleanup, biopolishing
and dyeing into one step.

 

For cotton knits

 
Novozymes’ latest 
biopolish innovation to 
additional fabrics beyond 
cotton such as lyocell, 
modal and viscose.

 

For knits beyond cotton

 

 		 Novozymes’ latest
biopolish innovation
for laundries.

 

Laundries

 






A family of solutions for sustainable textiles

In addition to biopolishing, Novozymes offers products for biopreparation, a more environmentally-friendly form of scouring / pretreatment for mills and dye houses. 

For consistent dyeing results every time, Novozymes offers solutions for effective bleach cleanup and desizing.

For more sustainable denim processing, Novozymes offers solutions for denim abrasion, bleaching and finishing. 

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