Bridging quality and circularity: how TENCEL™ Lyocell is unlocking recycled natural fibers’ commercial potential

Following Milano Unica’s successful showcase of innovative textile solutions earlier this month, we spoke with Carlo Covini, Lenzing’s Textile Accounts Manager for Italy and Switzerland, about collaborative innovations that are changing how recycled natural fibers are used.

In today’s textile industry, sustainable fabrics are becoming a favoured option, instead of an eco-friendly alternative, for brands and consumers alike. To manufacturers, the key to success is to maintain premium quality when incorporating substantial recycled content. With initiatives like the EU-backed Sustainable Textile Working Group and Circula-Tex in place, the industry needs practical solutions that enhance rather than compromise performance.

Carlo Covini plays a central role in driving new initiatives that enable the industry to use more recycled fibers without compromising on the quality or aesthetics of the resulting fabrics, and shares more about how Lenzing is collaborating closely with partners to bring these efforts to life.

Carlo, you’ve just returned from Milano Unica, where recycled content solutions generated considerable interest. In your opinion, what’s driving this momentum in the market?

Carlo: “The industry no longer sees using recycled materials as a compromise, but an opportunity to improve the end product performance. Our collaborative work with manufacturing partners shows that with the right technical approach, mechanically recycled natural fibers can create products that can match the performance of conventional alternatives.

Through our collaborative innovations, we are able to show how fiber design can change the way recycled materials can be applied. When you work with mechanically recycled cotton, silk, or wool, you often face problems like uneven fiber lengths, differences in strength, and other irregularities that simply are not present or applicable in new materials. Rather than just trying to work around these challenges, we found that these differences could be used as advantages to improve the product’s performance.”

Interesting, this suggests your approach has a different methodology at play.

“Exactly. Instead of acting as blending agents, our TENCEL™ Lyocell variants, particularly the low-fibrillating LF and LFH grades, and our non-fibrillating A100, serve as technical bridges that level out the inconsistencies while enhancing overall performance [1].

For example, recycled silk often has uneven surfaces that can be hard to work with. Blended with TENCEL™ Lyocell A100 fibers, we achieve exceptional colour uptake and processing stability. We have made premium knits with 75% TENCEL™ Lyocell - A100 and 25% recycled silk that are softer and visually appealing.”

The applications you showcased at Milano Unica ranged from luxury textiles to performance constructions. How do you determine optimal approaches for different end uses?

“Take the luxury sector, for example, and how it is changing how it defines values. Heritage craftsmanship increasingly means finding new and creative solutions that are not just based on traditional techniques.

We focus on understanding the characteristics of recycled materials and the final product requirements. Recycled cotton, for instance, tends to have uneven fiber lengths. By adding our TENCEL™ Lyocell – LF, the resulting fabric is softer and more consistent, making it suitable for commercial use. We’ve successfully created blends from 30% to 50% recycled content while enhancing the natural comfort properties consumers expect.

What excites me most is unlocking previously impossible applications. We’ve even developed new wrapped, dual-fiber yarns that incorporate ROICA™ V550, the world’s first Cradle to Cradle Certified™ elastane [2], alongside our fibers and recycled content, which can be used across several types of end uses from stretch applications and other performance categories.

The stretch performance has always been a limitation in the biodegradability of the fabrics with Roica V550. We increase sustainability performance – at the moment it is nice for little or luxury brands, but we have to push innovation and new concepts.”

You’ve been working with established Italian manufacturers to develop these innovations, which remain technically complex. How do you ensure consistency across different manufacturing processes while scaling these innovations?

“Working with experienced partners like Marchi & Fildi, Maggia, Destro, and Madiva has been essential for testing our ideas in real production settings. Each partner brings specialised expertise – advanced spinning, knitting, weaving – that lab work alone can't match.

Through this collaborative process, we’ve proven that pursuing quality consistency with significant recycled content isn’t just achievable but is also commercially scalable. We’ve reached a mutual understanding that consistency in recycled content applications requires careful adjustment across the entire production process. Our developed principles can be used across different manufacturing contexts and production scales. We now have a replicable approach that makes it easier and more cost-effective to use recycled materials, removing many of the usual obstacles.

From what I gathered from the partners after the fair, the feedback was positive and we have seen different approaches: brands that are looking for a close collaboration with the textile chain to optimize an internal, closed recycling concept, such as post industrial waste and garments with defects, and brands that are interested in our solution for knit and woven fabrics.”

Expectations concerning textile circularity are continually evolving. How does technical innovation align with these broader industry shifts and market demands?

“As transparency and circularity requirements continue to evolve globally, manufacturers need practical solutions that enhance rather than compromise commercial performance. Our approach creates timely and compelling opportunities because when quality limitations disappear, designers and manufacturers start pushing boundaries that previously didn’t exist.

The inherent traceability of our fibers provides supply chain visibility through identification technology [3]. At the same time, our new blending approach enables significant recycled content that becomes a competitive advantage rather than a compliance necessity, in line with consumer and retailer interest for more transparency.”

Looking beyond these collaborations, what potential do you see for broader industry adoption of recycled natural fibers?

“The critical factor will be showing real results. Success in sophisticated markets like Europe proves global viability.

The applications of recycled natural fibers continue expanding in ways that genuinely surprise us. Premium apparel manufacturers are discovering that blending recycled silk with TENCEL™ creates luxury fabrics that are more sustainable and in line with consumer demand. In cotton applications, using 30% to 50% recycled content [4] can make the resulting fabric even softer and more durable, and these blends can be used across several categories from casual wear to home textiles, and functional applications – categories previously constrained by material limitations.

What’s particularly encouraging to us is the recognition that circularity demands technical sophistication rather than acceptance of limitations. We’re already seeing interest from manufacturers who understand that the future potential belongs to those who embrace both performance excellence and environmental responsibility, rather than trade-offs [1] [5].

Milano Unica and the Italian partners have created a good platform to promote innovation. Our partners received specific orders, which is a good opportunity to promote our concept, making TENCEL™ the preferred blending partner for natural recycled fibers globally, not only in Italy.

Bringing these skills together isn’t just fixing today’s problems; rather, it’s helping to set new standards for the industry in the future.”

[1] TENCEL™ Lyocell and Modal fibers are made with at least 50% less carbon emissions and water consumption compared to generic lyocell and modal. Results based on LCA standards (ISO 14040/44) and available via the Higg Materials Sustainability Index (MSI) v3.10 (April 2025) by Cascale.

[2] https://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/fibers/en/roica/specialities/pdf/roica_v550.pdf

[3] TENCEL™ Lyocell fibers are produced with a molecular marker. This special identification technology ensures the authenticity and traceability of TENCEL™ fibers even after processing into textile products.

[4] The two tests carried out among Lenzing and the partners – one with a composition of 70% TENCEL™ Lyocell and 30% raw recycled cotton, the other with 50% TENCEL™ Lyocell and 50% raw recycled cotton, both designed for piece dyeing – gave life to a compact knit, with a final weight of 120 g/m², obtained using a yarn with a count of 1/50,000.

[5] To foster a sustainable global textile and nonwovens industry, Lenzing follows three strategic principles within the context of its “Naturally Positive” sustainability strategy, which focuses on greening the value chain, driving systemic change and advancing the circular economy through partnerships with key industry stakeholders, such as Textile Exchange, Cascale, Canopy, Together for Sustainability, Renewable Carbon Initiative, and UN Global Compact.