The question remains about how the DPP will be linked with import/export agencies for countries outside the EU—whether they will be automated or not. The use of DPP is a big conversation in the largest markets in the world, but there are too many questions to know when countries will be held accountable. The important message is that a conversation is happening broadly and the EU should help set precedence for other regions.

DPPs can also play a vital role in ensuring adherence to labour and human rights standards by enabling better visibility into the working conditions and practices within the supply chain. By fostering accountability and driving sustainable practices, DPPs can contribute to a more environmentally and socially responsible fashion industry, ultimately aiding in the achievement of climate goals and promoting ethical practices.

By implementing traceability solutions, DPPs can enhance credibility, facilitate monitoring and reporting, and help identify areas for improvement. Tools like DPP will support the 2050 climate goals by offering the data to understand if a company is changing enough to hit the target. Without leveraging physical traceability as an accompaniment, there could be gaps in the chain of custody and de-validate the use of DPP.

It is obviously interesting which seeds have been sowed where and by whom. The food sector has in parts existing technologies like the ear tag for live feedstock. This could help the textiles industry as well when addressing deforestation or animal welfare risks in leather procurement. We have proposed systems to take this data, but many actors refused to give it a try because not all countries have ear tag-regimes for live feedstock.

While some fashion companies have been quick to embrace this transformation, others may still be in the early stages of understanding and implementing digital passports. Nonetheless, the fashion industry as a whole has demonstrated a growing commitment to the DPP-driven future.

Adopting a change in practices is often a struggle in fashion. In our experience, brands are interested in piloting new solutions and technologies. There needs to be more understanding of what the new legislation requires and how they may be held accountable.

By simply trying to map out procurement risks and existing knowledge on recyclability of materials or their provenance is a big chunk of work. If you realise that a material you are using now in your product will not meet ESPR requirements like durability and circularity, the time to act is relatively short.

Natural colours/organic bio-colours earlier used to be extracted from plants, animals, ores and insects. However, disadvantages like long time of cultivation, requirement of large cultivable land, dependence upon season and geographical conditions and reproducibility of shade have prompted scientists to look for alternatives.

Some of our early challenges also included making the product in powder form. Initially, KBCols used to give products in liquid form due to cost and operational benefits, but we soon realised the industry has been working with powder form of product predominantly and would prefer it in that form, also because it’s easier to mix the colours to create secondary shades that way.

Getting to know about the industry and the stages of fabric production left me frustrated when realising how polluting our industry is; it made no sense to me. In my Master's degree, I started researching new materials, in particular biomaterials; it was then that I discovered the potential of seaweed. I was fashion and now I'm science.

In the absence of a commercial industry, conservation culling would still need to occur to manage the populations of certain species. A strictly regulated and ethical commercial industry has the ability to make use of kangaroos that would otherwise need to be discarded.

Growing up in a farming community, I witnessed firsthand the struggles farmers faced with declining yields, soil degradation, and unpredictable weather patterns. These challenges made it increasingly difficult for farmers to provide for their families and sustain their livelihoods.

The fashion industry is considerably young in Kenya despite a rich fashion culture. Production of garments and textiles within the country has not been scaled up significantly which leaves huge pockets of opportunities to build from. This was a key factor for us to focus on the fashion industry while making a social impact to small holder farmers in rural Kenya.

Our clients are brands that have the need to use sustainable materials in the manufacture of apparel, upholstery and footwear. We have just concluded our prototyping phase and are now entering the pilot stage of our business. Here, we intend to send samples of our material for testing to fashion brands and designers first in order to establish certain qualities of the fabric as we head into commercial sale of the fabric for different uses.

We have embraced a closed loop process in our production which leads to our huge savings on resources. This not only reduces resource consumption but also minimises the environmental impact associated with waste disposal. We are also incorporating the use of solar power in our production facility to run our various machines.

The new European laws are definitely a sign that we as a society are heading in the right direction. We are aware that it might take some time to get to a more balanced chapter in the textiles industry, but we are thrilled to know that we are indeed moving forward. Being a part of the change, a part of the solution, feels like we are playing our part in history.

Recycling is very important for us. We are the only denim company which has joined the Circular Textile Days and share our recycling visions. We have had our own recycling factory for over 25 years. Every day we collect 40 tonnes of waste, with 20 tonnes coming from our own denim factory. We also buy waste from other textile mills.

For circularity reasons we are working on turning our Slow Patterns collection into a monomaterial, made completely from local wool. The obstacle lies in still finding a weaving mill that uses wool on a jacquard loom as a warp. Most factories replaced wool completely through acrylic or polyester fibres, since they are easier to handle in the warp and with lower costs. Moreover, we want to offer our expertise and experience in natural dyes and sampling to other companies, and are happy to find new collaborators/partners.

The dyeing is integrated within the making of the bio-textile, thus leading to a unique design language. The dyeing becomes the designing, which gives room for surprising patterns and playfulness.

OrtaNow also holds new generation icons including: high performance Tencel lyocell in the weft to supreme softness and recovery—perfect for the coveted legging and slim style denim look, unisex stretch with clear twill line, and raw look performance stretch-engineered with ultimate fibre blends ensuring longevity for use and performance.