The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) has announced the winners of the 2026 Sustainability & Innovation Award, with three projects from institutions in the UK, South Korea, and China, covering chemical depolymerization of textile waste, chemical recycling of polyester, and circular regeneration of bioactive silk materials.

According to information released by ITMF, the award ceremony and project presentations will take place at the ITMF & IAF 2026 Conference, held from October 14 to 15, 2026, in Fortaleza, Brazil, co-hosted with the Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association (ABIT).

The award was established to recognize innovations within the textile industry that meet strict sustainability and environmental standards, with a focus on design, R&D, and production.

The winning projects, in alphabetical order, are:

Epoch Biodesign (UK) for "Scaling AI-driven enzymatic depolymerization to convert textile waste into fiber-grade nylon 6,6."

Huvis (South Korea) for "Polyester chemical recycling technology for sustainable automotive textiles."

Simabo Technology Co., Ltd (China) in collaboration with Wuhan Textile University for "Desert silkworm — bioactive silk ecological regeneration cycle."

Looking at the three project directions, chemical recycling and bio-based materials have become the two main pathways for textile sustainability innovation this year, with the process of converting textile waste into fiber-grade raw materials being particularly relevant to the industrialization proposition of old clothing recycling and regeneration.

Source: ITMF Announces Winners Of The ITMF Sustainability & Innovation Award 2026 · Originally published on 2026-09-23