Blockchain Being Used to Turn Ocean Plastic Waste Into Eco-Fabrics

Dutch company Waste2Wear says it has created the world's first collection of recycled fabrics, made from ocean plastics, that can be traced via blockchain.

Demand for tracing recycled materials

The eco-friendly firm is hosting an exhibition from Sept. 17-19 in Paris at the international textile fair Première Vision, American publication FashionUnited reported on Sept. 17.

First revealed on Aug. 20, the collection was specially developed by Waste2Wear in response to customer demand for recycled materials used in fabrics to be traceable. The company announced the launch of the beta version of its proprietary blockchain system for the new collection on Aug. 22.

Tons of plastic removed from ocean each week

Waste2Wear said plastic waste has to follow a long journey from the ocean to becoming a finished textile product, which requires a number of step-by-step data records. 

By implementing blockchain technology, the company intends to make the supply chain of ocean plastic fabrics fully traceable.

The plastic used for Waste2Wear Ocean Fabrics was sourced from the water and coastal areas of a small island near Shanghai. In cooperation with the local authorities, Waste2Wear built a business model allowing local fishermen to earn money by recovering plastics from the ocean. According to Waste2Wear, fishermen have been collecting more than three tons of waste from the ocean each week.

Waste2Wear is not the first entity to explore applying blockchain technology for ecological purposes. On Sept. 4, Germany's Free Democratic Party proposed paying crypto to anyone who removes carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.