I want to write this article about
eco-cashmere to try and clarify some of the questions and comments we've received on our Facebook ad posts.
Eco-cashmere is nothing more than
recycled cashmere, let me explain...
Every year, cashmere sweaters (and other fibers, but here we're talking about cashmere) are collected and, instead of being thrown into landfills or incinerated, they are reused.
They are manually selected, all impurities are removed (labels, tags, non-cashmere seams), and they are "shredded," meaning they are ground down to be refilamented. New cashmere yarns are then created and used by large and small clothing and knitwear brands. Here you can see the supply chain of our partner from whom we source our yarns:
www.youtube.com
The "old sweaters" are carefully selected by specialized personnel who can recognize cashmere fibers from other fibers, and in any case, laboratory analyses are performed to determine the fibers contained in the "new"
recycled yarns.
In our case, the "impurities" never exceed 3% and are always other wool or silk fibers. We are also applying for GRS (Global Recycle Standard) certification, which I won't elaborate on, but for those interested in learning more, you can check the certification body's website: https://icea.bio/certificazioni/non-food/prodotti-tessili-biologici-e-sostenibili/global-recycle-standard/
As for quality, these are regenerated fibers that have already undergone previous processing, such as spinning and dyeing. We use regenerated fibers "in their natural state," meaning we spin without the use of chemical agents and do not redye. We use the colors as we find them in the old sweaters, so we manage to maintain a fairly high quality, and we use a type of processing that reduces pilling. A careful chemical laboratory analysis shows that the regenerated fiber is exactly the same as cashmere that comes directly from the goat itself.
I would also like to clarify that we haven't invented anything new. In Prato, fibers of all kinds have been recycled since the 1800s. Almost all companies in the fashion sector worldwide buy or have bought yarns or fabrics from some company in Prato, and surely you too have worn an item made from regenerated fibers at least once in your life without even knowing it, whether it was cashmere, or wool, or silk, or any other natural or synthetic fiber.
I invite you to watch this video produced and broadcast by RAI in 1967:
www.facebook.com. If you are interested in the topic, I recommend you get comfortable and watch the video until the end.
www.florencecashmereyarn.com
