Banana Fibre: An Interview with Bananatex® Co-Founder Hannes Schoenegger
Along with the rise in demand for vegan alternatives and for low-priced fast fashion goods in the market, synthetic materials were increasingly used for handbags and accessories. While these fast fashion items often ended up in our landfills to slowly degrade, only recently have we seen a more diverse material landscape, with various bio materials offering viable alternative to the synthetic fabrics that the majority of bags are made of today.
In response to the plastic pollution problem, founders of Swiss backpack brand QWSTION spent three years developing a circular, zero-waste material that they could use in their own collection — and thus, durable, waterproof fabric called Bananatex® was born.
Recently featured in our 9th Future Fabrics Expo, Bananatex® material is a made from banana plants called the Abaća. Finishing treatments with a low environmental impact are applied to the fabric for durability, such as Ruco®-Dry Eco Plus water-repellent treatment (for the surface) & waterproof natural wax coating (on the backside). In addition, the yarn dyeing method applied is certified to Oeko-Tex® Standard 100. Bananatex® can be composted to close the product cycle loop, from plant to bag and back into the soil.
Abaća are cultivated in the Philippines within a natural ecosystem of sustainable mixed agriculture and forestry. Abaćas do not require pesticides or extra water to grow. The sustainable farming of banana plants in this region has been a key contributor to the regeneration and reforestation of areas that were once eroded by soil damage due to monocultural palm plantations…all while ensuring jobs for local farmers.
Left: Abaca plant. Right: Each Abacá plant has several stalks that can be harvested once a year, and regenerate fully within one year. Leaves are left to decompose as fertiliser. Image credit: Bananatex®
Discover the Bananatex® Lifecycle:
The Bananatex Lifecycle from QWSTION on Vimeo.
And the protection of our soils is indeed an urgent matter. According to the UN’s Global Land Outlook, a third of the planet’s land is severely degraded and fertile soil is being lost at the rate of 24bn tonnes per year. The expansion of chemical-based industrial farming is one of the biggest drivers of soil loss and degradation. If we continue to degrade the soil at the current rate, the world will run out of topsoil in about 60 years. Without topsoil, the earth’s ability to filter water, absorb carbon, and feed people, disappears. Soils host a quarter of our earth’s biodiversity. (FAO)
However, a system of regenerative agriculture will have farming practices that function similarly to a natural ecosystem: incorporating beneficial insects, birds and soil microorganisms, unlike a monoculture farming system (Savory). In turn, this helps reverse climate change by rebuilding soil organic matter and restoring biodiversity (Regeneration International). Bananatex® has calculated that in one year, one banana tree can compensate for the CO2 emissions of production and transport of more than 10 bags.
Bananatex® forms one of QWSTION’s main backpack collections, and the fabric was also seen in the Mae chair, a collaboration with German design studio PALAIUS.
We interviewed Hannes Schoenegger, one of the co-founders of QWSTION and Bananatex®, to see what Bananatex® has in store next…
1. Can you provide a brief outline of Bananatex® and what key aspects make it sustainable? Particularly when compared to conventional outdoor materials?
Bananatex grows within a permaculture, without any pesticides, herbicides, fertiliser and without additional water. It is therefore 100% natural and biodegradable without industrial composting support – even the version we use ourselves, with waterproof natural wax coating.
2. How do you think Abacá will play a part in the future landscape of materials? Is it scalable?
The raw material has been cultivated for centuries – mostly to produce special papers from it. Therefore the supply is already very large – which will enable Bananatex to scale substantially.
3. In what ways have you seen that Bananatex had a positive impact on nature and communities?
Wherever we can replace oil-based materials, it will have a major impact. Bananatex, being a truly and fully circular innovation is our contribution to a smaller environmental footprint.
4. What are your goals and plans moving forward?
We started working with several companies and brands from all kinds of industries. Bananatex seems to be an alternative for many products, and we are committed to driving the innovation further with those partners. We will see “third party” products in the market already 2020.
QWSTION – A TEXTILE (R)EVOLUTION from QWSTION on Vimeo.
