Companies are turning to sustainable manufacturing practices to help alleviate some of these emissions. What exactly is sustainable manufacturing? According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), sustainable manufacturing is the creation of manufactured products through economically-sound processes that minimize negative environmental impacts while conserving energy and natural resources. Sustainable manufacturing also enhances employee, community, and product safety.
A second example of sustainable manufacturing is the use of seaweed spun yarn. Kelp is one of the most regenerative organisms on the entire planet, with multiple species growing in large underwater forests. With so much kelp readily available, it is a sustainability gold mine. Kelp can be turned into fibers and spun into yarns that are incredibly strong, but also biodegradable. These yarns allow designers and manufacturers to promote a circular fashion industry while lowering their carbon footprint. And these designers and manufacturers are also turning to living organisms again for all-natural pigments. Microbes can now produce natural dyes which are better for the environment, and stack up against synthetical chemical dyes which are more harmful to the environment.
A third example of sustainable manufacturing was the little black dress created by a partnership bewteen LanzaTech and ZARA. The dress on display was the first ever garment to feature a polyester fabric which is partly biologically derived, instead of coming from 100 percent virgin fossil resources. The process includes capturing carbon emissions and feeding them to microbes, which can turn them into useful chemicals for manufacturing.
The last example is the use of mycelium for a variety of products. Mycelium is a root-like structure of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Simply put, mycelium is the network of roots under the ground from which mushrooms grow. That means that the supply is immense, and it can also be grown in a bioreactor, needing only food waste as a nutrient source. The mycelium is processed and rolled out as a “mushroom leather.” This process avoids the use of harmful chemicals that are used
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