United States

Inspired by nature’s ability to construct a diverse array of functional materials, scientists at the University of Connecticut have developed a method to produce continuously tunable non-toxic materials.

Organic cotton production in the US could soon get a fillip as small-plot experiments begin in certified or transitioning organic fields in Texas, New Mexico and Tennessee over a four-year period to evaluate specific regenerative management practices.

The Sewn Products Equipment & Suppliers of the Americas (SPESA) played host to the 38th World Fashion Convention of the International Apparel Federation (IAF). The President of the SPESA, Michael McDonald, takes time out to tell texfash.com how the event went by, and the context in which it was held in the US.

In a potential game-changer for agriculture, Mississippi State University (MSU) scientists have developed a robot that works with camera-based perception system to identify and pluck one cotton boll at a time.

Researchers at MIT have come up with FibeRobo, a fibre that can contract up to 40% without bending, actuate at skin-safe temperatures, and be produced with a low-cost setup for 20 cents per metre, which is about one-sixtieth times cheaper than commercially available shape-changing fibres.

Innovation startup Protein Evolution is collaborating with several US agencies with the overarching goal to reduce emissions from petroleum-based plastic production and the landfilling and incineration of plastic waste.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 17 states in the country have sued Amazon.com for using its monopolistic power to illegally stifle competition and discourage new players.

Mass customisation can be the basis for a new business model in fashion that is more sustainable and more profitable. By proving people will pay more for their personalised clothes, businesses can compensate by selling fewer clothes for more money, rather than selling more units of disposable clothing for less money, says new research.

Biotechnology company MycoWorks has begun production of its leather-alternative material at its manufacturing facility — perhaps the world’s largest mycelium material operation — in the United States.

A cleantech biochemical start-up Nature Coatings has given the world perhaps its first carbon-negative black pigment — the BioBlack TX — sourced from FSC certified wood waste. texfash.com talks to the Founder-CEO Jane Palmer on her journey this far.