VN textile and garment sector makes eco-friendly moves

Many textile and garment businesses are researching, developing and using eco-friendly materials, responding to a global trend. File photo from baotintuc.vn

HCM CITY — Vietnamese textile and garment businesses are making a green push with research and development of eco-friendly materials and technologies to adapt to global sustainable fashion trends.

The HCM City-based Thành Công Textile Garment-Investment-Trading Joint Stock Company (TCM) now uses recycled polyester, vicose annd recycled cotton that are made from recycled bottles, maize, sugarcane and old clothes.

Trần Như Tùng, chairman of the Board of Directors of TCM, told Sài Gòn Giải Phóng (Liberated Sài Gòn) newspaper that many fashion brands in the world who were major partners and customers of Việt Nam’s textile and garment industry, had shifted to seeking “green businesses” as partners.

He said TCM soon recognised the trend of sustainable fashion, so it decided in 2015 to build a research and business development (R&BD) department.

The company invited South Korean and local experts to help them create new eco-friendly products to meet high demand.

Tùng said while many orders were cancelled during the COVID-19, R&BD department helped the company to overcome the toughest time by introducing antibacterial masks for export.

Faslink is another leading company in Việt Nam to focus on sustainable fashion.

Since 2008, the company has researched and created various kinds of fibre, including those made from lotus stems and leaves, coffee grounds, peppermint, seashells and coconut fibre.

General Director Trần Hoàng Phú Xuân said that in 2021, Faslink supplied around eight million of eco-friendly fabrics to the market.

She said in the past four years, the demand for sustainable fashion products had increased, with her company receiving more and more orders for green material supply from domestic enterprises.

Early this year, Faslink collaborated with young Vietnamese designers like Võ Công Khanh to release new collections highlighting its green fabrics.

Xuân said that the company aimed to spread the message of sustainable development and eco-friendly lifestyles among the community, and to provide Vietnamese consumers the best products which were good for personal health and the planet’s health.

Customers are shopping for a shirt made from peppermint fibres by OWEN fashion brand. File photo from the company’s Facebook page

The Việt Thắng Jean Ltd Co (VITAJEAN) has applied sustainable and ecological finishing technology for their denim products.

The company uses Ozone-G2, a technology that dramatically reduces the amount of water and chemicals used, and the e-Flow technology to transmit chemicals into a garment with a minimal quantity of water and zero discharge.

VITAJEAN has also sought and developed new green material for their products.

VITAJEAN chairman Phạm Văn Việt said that there was high demand for eco-friendly fashion products in markets like EU, Japan, and the US. The company had, therefore, invested in making green fibres to produce more eco-friendly and biodegradable products, he said.

Nguyễn Thị Tuyết Mai, deputy general secretary of the Việt Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), said the association has launched a project called “Greening Việt Nam’s Textile Sector” to transform the sector into one that is more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

This project also focuses on improving water management and energy sustainability.

Mai said that Vietnamese and FDI businesses had invested a lot in research and development to offer more and more eco-friendly products.

The move would help businesses establish leading positions in the domestic market and create more competitive advantages in the international market, she added. – VnExpress News