ÖGUT Environmental Award: Lenzing again honored as champion of the circular economy

The Lenzing Group, the world's leading supplier of wood-based specialty fibers, was awarded the prestigious ÖGUT Environmental Prize 2022 in the "World without Waste" category on Thursday, March 31. The Austrian Society for Environment and Technology (ÖGUT) paid particular tribute to Lenzing's contribution to the transformation of the textile and apparel industry from a linear to a circular economy model.

With 40 million tons of waste annually, the textile and apparel industry is one of the industries with the highest environmental impact and is therefore in urgent need of change. Lenzing aims to drive this change and therefore also welcomes the European Circular Economy Strategy, which aims to reduce resource consumption, prevent pollution and waste, increase value creation and resource efficiency, and mitigate negative social impacts on people.

"Effective textile recycling is one of the most complex core issues facing the textile industry in the coming years. By bundling know-how and cooperation, we at Lenzing see a targeted realization of possible solutions. Therefore, we are very pleased about this recognition," says Sonja Zak, Head of Circularity Initiative of the Lenzing Group.

As part of its submission, the Lenzing Group presented its circular economy business model focused on sustainable innovation. Exemplified by the introduction of the first commercial cellulose fiber with recycled content based on REFIBRATM technology and the pioneering cooperation with Södra.

From Linear to Circular
The cooperation with the Swedish pulp producer Södra is another milestone in Lenzing's efforts to implement its ambitious climate and sustainability goals. The two global market leaders, who have been proactively promoting the circular economy in the fashion industry for many years, are joining forces to give the issue a further boost and make a decisive contribution to solving the global textile waste problem. There are also plans to expand capacities for the recovery of pulp from used textiles. The goal is to be in a position to recycle 25,000 tons of used textiles per year by 2025.

Lenzing has decades of expertise in developing mature innovations in recycling, such as its REFIBRATM and Eco Cycle technologies. In addition to the use of pure fiber pulp, these technologies enable the processing of a significant proportion of recycled material obtained from blanks left over from cotton production and used clothing.

One loop that needs to be closed is fiber-to-fiber recycling for mixed materials. Lenzing's REFIBRATM technology currently upcycles cotton waste from apparel production. To a lesser extent, Lenzing is also able to recycle waste textiles made from pure cellulose fibers. The former is converted into cotton pulp, part of which is added to fiber pulp, which in turn is used to produce TENCELTM lyocell fibers.

The ÖGUT Environmental Award was presented this year in a total of six categories. The awards were given for technological and social innovations that reduce energy and resource consumption and contribute to social sustainability. "Important for the jury's decision was that Lenzing AG builds on existing process technologies while being innovative and scalable. Since Lenzing AG is already established in the market, there is also a high visibility of the topic," according to the jury statement. ÖGUT is an independent non-profit organization that has been working for a sustainable orientation of the economy and society for more than 30 years.