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Sustainability Increasingly Embedded in How New Materials, Processes and Production Systems Are Being Developed by 20 Start-Ups

Emerging start-ups from nine countries have been selected for fully funded participation in Start-Up Valley during ITMA 2027 in Hanover, an exhibition held every four years in Europe. Although their technologies address different challenges across the value chain, the companies share a common focus on sustainability and circularity.

Top Stories
 
CIRCULARITY / RECYCLING / SECONDS / WASTE

Recycling Cannot Repair What the Production Phase Has Already Locked In

The environmental debate around fast fashion has long turned on a single question: cotton or polyester, which is greener. A comprehensive lifecycle assessment now suggests the question itself was misplaced. Tracing garments from raw material through disposal, the research finds transport mode and garment lifespan reshape emissions by margins that no fibre substitution can match.

 
FLASHPOINT: CLIMATE
Material Innovation / Bezos Fund

Breakthrough textile materials have received $34 million in new Bezos Earth Fund grants, backing research into bacterial fibres, spider-silk-inspired biodegradable materials, coloured cotton and cotton seedbank restoration. The funding targets materials that can match rayon, silk and cotton while improving cost, performance and environmental outcomes across fashion and textile supply chains.

Climate Action / Ethiopia Project

Climate resilience, productivity and workplace safety are being advanced across Ethiopia's leather, textile and garment sector through a new ILO-Japan joint initiative. The one-year programme targets 40 factories across five cities, integrating Japanese expertise, digitalised safety tools and a women's leadership development programme to drive sustainable and inclusive industrial growth.

 
 
 
FOCUS: COTTON

SWITCH-Asia Project Ends With 36 Sourcing Commitments and 50,000 Young Consumers Engaged Across India

A four-year European Union-funded project coordinated by Fairtrade International has concluded after reaching more than 9,500 cotton farmers and 700 textile manufacturers across India, with a primary focus on Tamil Nadu. The initiative delivered digital sustainability tools, capacity-building programmes, and market links between Indian suppliers and European buyers.

 
 
 
SPOTLIGHT EDITIONS: SELECT 4
 

"Quote Unquote"

Pankaj Kabutarwala
Pankaj Kabutarwala
Founder/Owner
Piccion
The characteristics of the yarn have a direct impact on the softness, stretch, recovery, comfort and overall performance of the finished garment. Even small differences in yarn behaviour can affect the final product, so understanding how different yarns respond during knitting, dyeing and finishing is very important.

"Quote Unquote"

Olga IF
Olga IF
Founder
Modavision
A very important element is audience participation through real-time voting. In a certain sense, real people become part of the process of international recognition of designers, rather than only closed professional industry structures. Another important factor is the idea of healthy creative interaction between countries. This interaction is not built around commercial pressure but around cultural expression and design vision, creating a space of respect and mutual interest between participants.
 
 
FOCUS: LEATHER

Major Reorganisation Positions Fierecongressi as a More Competitive Force in Global Exhibition Markets

A major internal reorganisation, aligned with a growth strategy and a substantial infrastructure investment programme, has reshaped Fierecongressi's operational model. The restructuring establishes a dedicated Internationalisation Area, merges two business units into a single Fairs Business Unit, and introduces a product-oriented structure to strengthen the company's competitive position in the global exhibition and congress market.