// Uniqlo announced it has started to create clothing from recycled plastic bottles
// Its popular down jackets will also be made from recycled down
// The new initiatives will first launch in Japan before hopes to go global
Uniqlo has announced plans to create clothing from recycled plastic bottles as well as down jackets from recycled down.
The fashion retailer has partnered with Japanese manufacturer Toray to deliver the new sustainability commitment.
At a press conference this week in London, Uniqlo said it had already started to create clothing from recycled plastic bottles.
The Japanese fashion giant will begin selling its sweat-wicking Dry-Ex products made from polyester fibres derived from reclaimed PET bottles.
The joint development between Uniqlo and Toray will see the rollout of recycled items from from spring/summer 2020.
For the recycled down jackets, the collection of Ultra Light Down products from Uniqlo’s Japanese customers will begin later in the year and then processed to extract the raw down materials.
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“It’s not simple a case of ‘today Japan, tomorrow the world’ as there are challenges in some countries,” Toray chief executive Akihiro Nikkaku told Fashion Network, in regards to an estimate timeframe for a global roll out.
Nikkaku added that Japanese consumers have normalised the process of recycling, ensuring plastics are cleaned and labels are removed, something that isn’t common practice worldwide.
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