DePoly has developped a technology to recycle materials like multi-layer packaging plastics and colored textiles (that formerly used to end up on landfills or nature because there wasn´t a feasible way to recycle them yet). In many countries we have been recycling cleaned PET bottles for years. But not colored clothes that are made of the same material. DePoly claims that thanks to their new technology, the CO2-footprint of new synthetic products (including polyester clothes) can be reduced by up to 66%.
Switzerland based company Säntis Textiles has developped a new procedure to create recycled cotton fibres out of old cotton clothes and rests of cotton fibres (including mixed cotton-polyester fabrics, so called CVC from the textioe industry. They call it the RCO100 technology. No water is needed in the process (the immense water consumption for growing and producing cotton is a main issue). The company is trying to expand all over the world so maybe in the future there won´t be clothes anymote that ends up on a landfill or - even worse - somewhere in a river or a beach polluting the environment.
Citrus juices production generates 700'000 tons of unused cirtus byproducts that is being thrown away in Italy alone. This startup found out how to use that (otherwise thrown away) material and turn it into an ecological fabric.
While the main goal should be to not produce any foodwaste at all (apparently in Germany 2 mio. tons a year of "non food milk" is being thrown away by the milk industry) I do agree that it is a great achievement by a German scientist and designer to have found a way to actually turn unused milk into a 100% ecological and biodegradable high quality silklike fabric(!). For 1 dress approx. 6 liters of milkwaste is needed. Or 30l for 1 kg of clothes. And just 2l of water (compared to cotton: 11000l).
A Dutch designer extracted the cellulose from cow dung to fight the problem of manure surplus