Good to know

In 2009, Javier Goyeneche founded ECOALF , after his son Alfredo was born. From his son's name and the idea of ​​creating an eco-label, the Brand name ECOALF . The Spaniard, who had previously worked in the fashion industry, no longer wanted to watch how ruthlessly people and especially the Fashion industry deal with natural resources. His mission: to create the first generation of recycled products that are in no way inferior to conventional clothing in terms of quality and design.

Since then, ECOALF above 300 new materials and fabrics developed from PET bottles, fishing nets, coffee grounds, car tires, post-industrial cotton and wool. The company collects the waste from the seabed, because that is where the pollution is particularly tragic. By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean. In Spain alone, ECOALF with more than 3000 fishermen for their initiative “Upcycling the Oceans” together.

GRR

The Global Recycled Standard is the first standard designed to set requirements for products made from recycled materials. GRS certification is a holistic standard that confirms that a product has the recycled content it claims to have.

The standard applies to products that contain 20% or more recycled materials, but also to the supply chain of companies involved in the production of GRS products.

philosophy

The team of ECOALF is convinced that our planet in a critical phase and that something must be done – NOW!

ECOALF’s top priority is to to care about its employees and its customers . Uniting and sticking together is the only way to become part of the solution and not part of the problem.

ECOALF believes that Fast fashion , based on a monthly rhythm of new trends and the idea of ​​buy/throw away, buy/throw away, has a fatal impact on the planet in terms of the consumption of natural resources, energy and emissions.

All trading at ECOALF , is constantly evaluated with the goal of having the least possible impact on the planet and local communities. It's no longer just about what you do, but how you do it!

Sustainability, quality and timeless design are part of our philosophy at ECOALF , as a sign of longevity and responsible action. Following the latest fashion trends is not one of our core design principles. We believe that a good design neither new nor old It is just a Bridge between the past and the future .

ECOALF supports no overproduction . Producing in stock creates waste and natural resources are not infinite. ECOALF stands by this conviction, even if it may mean a loss of sales.

As a proud Member of the B-Corp community it is not the aim of ECOALF to become the largest company in the world, but one that is best for the world .

engagement

Upcycling the Oceans

The Ecoalf Foundation has been working and committed to the revolutionary project Upcycling the Oceans . Javier Goyeneche started this ambitious project in 2015. At that time, he had already been working on his concept for several years and no longer wanted to accept the waste of natural resources and the excessive production of waste. Together with fishermen, the Ecoalf Foundation then to clean up the Mediterranean coast of Spain. More and more regions and countries are now to join in and make the initiative a global project. Because the Ecoalf Foundation is certain: “Plastic pollution in our oceans requires a global response.” The “Upcycle the oceans” initiative has set itself exactly this goal: to rid the oceans of garbage , thereby minimizing the negative impact on the environment and at the same time recycling or upcycling the collected waste. The plastics found in the sea are therefore used to make threads, which in turn are used to produce fabrics and, in the next step, clothing, shoes and bags.

The revolutionary project aims to be replicated all over the world and its main goal is to To recover garbage that destroys the sea and him in high-quality yarn to create garments. This groundbreaking initiative has three goals: The removal of waste from our seas that damage marine ecosystems; the Restoring a second life for waste recovered through the circular economy and raising awareness of the global problem of marine pollution . This project is complex and faces major challenges, mainly related to the low and inconsistent quality of the waste recovered by fishermen due to their exposure to sunlight, salt and water. Investments in research and development are crucial to achieve quality in line with Ecoalf standards.

After recovery and landing, the waste is sorted according to its nature and stored for subsequent recycling. In particular, the PET plastic bottles that The main raw material of ECOALF is first converted into flakes and pellets to later produce a high-quality, 100% recycled polyester filament without further depleting the planet's natural resources.

"By 2050, there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish."

materials

Recycled polyester

Through the Use of recycled PET reduced ECOALF the Water consumption by 20% , the Energy consumption by 50% and the CO2 emissions by 60% (estimated data on recycled PET vs. conventional polyester). Recycled polyester can be reused, which is why this material is highly valued in the circular economy. ECOALF works with recycled polyester from the following sources:

1. Recycled PET Polyester (Post-Consumer Waste) : The majority of the recycled polyester used by ECOALF is made from recycled plastic water bottles. These bottles are reclaimed using a mechanical process that first transforms them into flakes and pellets, to then be spun into high-quality yarn.

2. Recycled PET polyester from the sea (post-consumer waste): The Ecoalf Foundation was born in the Mediterranean in 2015 and leads the Upcycling the Oceans project with the sole aim of saving the planet and the oceans. It currently works with more than 3000 fishermen in 40 ports, resulting in a total of 550 fishing vessels. ECOALF has spent more than 2 years developing the technology to transform marine plastic into high-quality yarn.

ECOALF works with its factories to transform the traditional recycled polyester into this new yarn made from recycled plastic from the oceans. Only 5 to 10% of the waste collected is PET, this is the only material that ECOALF can transform into high quality yarn. As part of its mission to protect the oceans and combat marine litter, ECOALF collects and guarantees the proper management of 100% of the waste collected.

3. Polyester from economic waste (post-industrial and post-consumer waste): To move the industry to circulation!
ECOALF is currently researching and testing a new technology that will allow suppliers to transform old garments into recycled yarn to produce recycled fabrics for ECOALF collections. Unfortunately, this innovative technology not yet available to most of the ECOALF suppliers, but there are ECOALF already have some products that are made from used clothing.

Recycled nylon

Many of the down jackets from ECOALF are made from recycled nylon Thanks to the most advanced technology, ECOALF is able to produce ultra-light and soft fabrics that make the garments recognizable. Recycled nylon drastically reduces the number of steps in the production process compared to the traditional processes used for nylon.

This reduction of processes leads to a Reducing CO2 emissions and water consumption . Recycled nylon can be recycled again when the garments have reached the end of their active life. Even though the preferred quality of recycled nylon comes from fishing nets abandoned in the oceans, this material remains scarce. For this reason, ECOALF In addition to nylon from fishing nets, there is also nylon that is made from the remains of production processes.

For the garments made from fishing nets ECOALF collaborates with ECONYL® . This regenerated nylon yarn is made from discarded fishing nets (25%), scrapped carpets (25%) and pre-consumer nylon waste (50%). All of this waste is recovered and transformed into a new yarn that has the same properties as nylon made from new raw materials, but prevents new waste from entering the environment.

Through the Using this yarn, ECOALF is fighting the problem of ghost fishing nets , which account for 10% of marine debris. Many marine animals, including turtles, sharks, whales, dolphins and manatees, become entangled in ghost nets. From 2000 to 2012, the National Marine Fisheries Services reported an average of 11 large whales entangled in ghost nets each year along the West Coast of the United States.

Estimates suggest that Ghost fishing nets take over 600 years to decompose in the ocean, and during those 600 years they pose a threat to marine life. They are designed to restrict movement so they tear, infect, suffocate, and slowly starve the animal to death.

Recycled cotton

Approximately 3% of the world's land area is used for cotton cultivation More than half of the cotton fields are artificially irrigated and up to 90% of the water used is drinkable. One of the textile sector's biggest environmental impacts comes from cotton production, as it uses a lot of water both during cultivation and production.

Cotton production often takes place in developing countries where people already have problems accessing clean drinking water. However, the water is still used for irrigation purposes.

One example is the Aral Sea, located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which was the fourth largest lake in the world in its heyday but has now dried up completely. Its path to extinction began in the 1980s when its waters were diverted to be used for certain agricultural crops, mainly cotton production.

The shrinking of the Aral Sea was "one of the worst environmental disasters on the planet" and the fashion industry has been part of this problem as it has been part of the water crisis due to the billions of cubic metres of water it requires every year. We all love cotton, but it is a water and chemical intensive fibre and we cannot jeopardise future generations' access to water due to our current cotton production.

Recycled wool

ECOALF has chosen recycled wool as an alternative to conventional wool that comes directly from animals. Recycled wool is a material that has been used for several years. Countries such as Spain and Italy have a tradition of making fabrics from recycled wool. The wool is recycled through a mechanical process similar to that of cotton. Just like recycled cotton, the resulting fiber is of lower quality than the ordinary one.

For this reason, regenerated wool has always been considered a material of low or secondary quality. Aim of ECOALF is it the quality of this material so that it is the Level of virgin wool reached.

To achieve this, ECOALF works in two areas:

1. Selection of a raw material:
Selection of a raw material (post-industrial wool) of the highest quality, which ECOALF enables the best result in the final product.

2. Work on sustainable and innovative finishing processes:
...which improve the final properties of the fibre, thereby achieving a softer and lighter feel.

Recycled tires

The Flip flops by Ecoalf are unique. They are the result of two years of investment in R&D and innovation through a collaboration with Signus and the Technological Center for Footwear of La Rioja (CTCR).

The recycling process of tires is very complex because they contain various materials such as textiles and metals that complicated procedures separated Once the rubber is separated from the other elements, a powder is obtained with a specific grain size and under conditions that allow it to be transformed into flat wedges using heat and pressure - without the use of glue or adhesive material. A completely innovative process in which no external material is added other than that from the recycled tires.

It is a product 100% designed and manufactured in Spain.

A post-consumer coffee grounds finish

Thanks to the cooperation with the company that Patent for converting coffee grounds into pellets with technical properties, is ECOALF able to give its garments properties that would otherwise require chemical treatment. These properties are: Quick drying. UV protection. Odor control.

The Coffee grounds are collected daily in the cafeterias and goes through a process in which the moisture is removed by pressure and drying in a first step. There, the coffee grounds are separated from the oil to be used for cosmetics. The coffee powder is then pressed, compacted and converted into pellets, which are PET or nylon granulate (both are always recycled). The coffee grounds themselves cannot be turned into yarn, so they must be combined with fabrics. In this way we obtain yarn that naturally contains all the properties that coffee can give, without using chemicals.

"Because there is no Planet B" ECOALF