Dyeluxe provides 100% natural pigments from regionally sourced food by-products as a chemical detox for the textile dye industry. This sustainable project enriches the biodiversity of natural colorants, while reducing the circularity gap within the food and fashion industry simultaneously. The mapping of such localized colors, promotes the revival of traditional dyeing techniques with a modern twist and creates new opportunities for cities and creative industries for sustainable development.
Local
Germany
Berlin
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
No
No
As an individual
URL:https://www.instagram.com/dyeluxe/ Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): @dyeluxe #dyeluxe #foodbyproductdye #gravetocradle
To tackle the toxicity of the textile dye industry that harms humans and the environment Dyeluxe develops 100% natural dye pigments from by-products of the food industry coming from processing waste of juices and restaurants like turmeric, pomegranate or avocado. It introduces a new raw material resource that is safe for the environment and health, while reducing the circularity gap within the food and fashion industry simultaneously. Besides being a valuable colorant for the fashion industry these natural food by-product pigment extracts can have a positive influence in other industries as well as they are capable of coloring a range of materials such as algae based biopolymers, wooden components or applied as paper printing inks.
The creation of such natural pigment extracts is processed in a circular manner, starting from processing waste sourcing down to its dye extract residues, which can be safely composted or used as fertilizer. Moreover, it requires no extra land for cultivation, nor does it compete with food production and land scarcity. Even local and regional food by-product suppliers benefit financially through their food by-products as previously they had to pay for the disposal of their organic waste. Through utilizing local waste streams, a new natural color palette is unveiled, which will boost the natural dye industry, while broadening its outreach and accessibility locally and regionally to natural dyers.
The goal is to set up a regional model in the construct of a (social) franchise in Berlin in order to bring all stakeholders onboard, form a natural dyer community to revive lost natural dye knowledge, train about the benefits of the new raw materials and document the setup process. A production system in the form of an ecopark will be built that can serve as a model in replicating the Grave-to-Cradle methodology of circularity food by-products into pigment extracts in other cities and regions globally, while giving back to its community.
Biodiversity preservation
Food by-products
Wellbeing
Craftsmanship
Circular city models
Throughout centuries color originated from natural elements. Obtaining certain color pigments was a rarity associated with royalty and its production were kept a secret. Color was affiliated with power and wealth, but since the emergence of the first organic synthetic dye, colors became a commodity, yet neglected to factor in the toxic true costs it has on humans and environment. Now only 1% of the world's synthetic dye consumption is nature-based stated by Asim Kumar Roy Choudhury disclosed in his Eco-friendly Dyes and Dyeing publication.
As the current production model is mostly linear, resource depletion is becoming an urgent problem to amend. Thinking of resources in closed-loop production systems is a starting point towards achieving circular economies. Mimicking natural patterns, like the blood circulation system, can highlight naturally
functioning closed-loop systems. By looking at it as a metaphor, there are equal amounts of arteries pumping blood (raw materials, products) into our system and veins bringing it into full circle without a single drop of blood being lost. There are a magnitude of dyes being created, yet only a handful solutions, which
bring it into circulation. Dyeluxe strives to become the veins of the dye industry through applying its self-developed Grave-to-Cradle methodology, which is an inverse circular strategy towards tackling circularity gaps in both the food and fashion industry by starting at the end of the food supply chain with the usage of
food by-products for pigment extraction.
Food by-product dye pigments can fulfil the same function as existing natural dye pigments, but with lesser environmental impact in terms of chemical and land use. It does not divert resources from other industries in terms of raw materials, land usage, irrigation or fertilizers. A by-product instead supports using already existing resources and circulates waste resources in the form of regional ecoparks.
By using a new raw material resource, the food by-products, the color varieties of the natural dye color palette are broadened. This is not just beneficial for designers and dye houses to enlarge their product portfolio, it also means that beyond plant, mineral and animal derived natural colors the biodiversity is expanded with a fourth category. While the existing three categories require a growth period for cultivation before harvesting can be achieved, food by-products skip this stage and only need to be collected. This saves largely on production time and is no longer dependent on regional cultivation and climate influences as it is a biowaste that will always be locally available. Its dependency relies on the location and size of food related companies, not environmental circumstances.
In the food by-products and its extracts there are no chemicals, which provides safe working conditions for natural dyers, workers in the processing, extraction stage and in dye houses. They are not exposed to toxic substances or fumes during the production stages. A knowledge hub will be created to also facilitate consultations,
training, and workshops on how you can implement these pigments into your own supply chain and to revive lost natural dyeing knowledge. Campaigns spread through social media will be created to raise awareness of the toxicity in the textile dye industry and call for action on creating a healthy process for industry specialists and consumers alike e.g. by adding on to the Fashion Revolution movement “What is in my dyes” question and use hashtags like #whatismydyes. End consumers are affected as well as. The clothes we wear are in constant contact with our body and our body communicates it back to us if something is not right e.g. through skin contact allergies caused by dyeing chemicals or cancer caused by chromium tanned leather.
Through mapping waste streams regionally, a new supply chain management system called “ecopark” can be formulated. By sourcing each other’s waste streams, a zero waste emission could be achieved and on the long haul a closed loop regional production system of food by-products. The aim is to shift the mindset from organic waste to build local communities to close resource losses together that will boost the region’s economy and bring in new revenue streams and jobs. As these food by-products are not used, it is discarded as biowaste, then burnt but now they aid bridging the circularity gap between the food and the fashion industry. This approach reduces expenses for food companies and allows to maintain low pigment prices as the raw material input could be accessed free of charge or for a low amount, providing affordable costs to businesses or crafty end-consumers. The first regional model will be set up in Berlin and documented to be able to replicate the model for other regions.
Berlin has a natural dyer community, but there is a lack of shops selling natural pigments locally. Ordering from online web shops or cultivating your own dye plants is the common way to gain access to it in whole of Germany. Locally attainable dye pigments are mostly synthetics, which are available in arts and crafts stores, drugstores, and supermarkets, but seldom in fabric stores. Currently, online dye pigment stores sell pre-packed sizes only, there is no flexibility to ask for just the right amount you need. With Dyeluxe customers could be able to precisely specify the desired quantity and have accessibility to purchase locally sourced natural pigments. Under the concept of zero wastage, it could not only partner up with textile stores, but more specifically with local zero waste stores to offer the pigments as a "pick & weight" solution and can thus eliminate single use packaging as well. Dyeluxe would be the pioneer to offer such a comprehensive package of pigment sourcing, changing behavioral and mindset towards sustainable dyes with its Knowledge Hub educative programs on top.
Local food by-product suppliers: in Berlin Brandenburg there are 116 food industry related companies stated by Berlin Business Location Center. So far 3 Berlin companies have been involved in the initial testing phase for proof of concept and provided their waste material to investigate and experiment on. It helped establish the baseline for the pigment extraction methodology. The end results were disclosed to the main partner, whom were very pleased and even facilitated a one-month exhibition in their store so their customers can be inspired and informed of the circular approaches.
Regional educative projects: as this project is related to creating a circular economy, local organizations have reached out for workshop to educate their audiences and help spread the world. For instance Greenpeace during the Fashion Revolution Week asked Dyeluxe to host a dyeing workshop for visitors to teach them on how their kitchen waste can have more value and visitors, especially excite children to experiment with creating colours out of them. Also local design universities have provided the space to introduce Dyeluxe as guest lectures.
National & European design collaborations & Showcases: through word of mouth and winning an international sustainability award, visibility has been raised around Dyeluxe, which attracted national design collaborations to experiment if the pigments could be applied onto different applications. These collaborations proved the pigments can colour wood, paper, bio-based sequins and the dyed textile can be attached with water-base glue onto acoustic panels as surface coating. Many of these experiments were then invited to exhibitions such as the Munich Fabric Start or Dutch Design Week where the European industry connections were introduced as SME fashion brands and natural dye houses interests were peaked in integrating it into their production processes.
Dyeluxe is combination of modern raw material integration into an existing product system. The twist is to bring back the lost traditional artisanal dyeing craftsmanship from around the globe and reconnect them to current industrial production methodologies.
Dyeluxe's innovation is twofold. On the one hand, it offers product innovation. Dyeluxe turned to sourcing unconventional raw materials, food by-products, to feed into the natural dyeing process. It offers a chemical detox for the dye industry by providing non-toxic natural color pigments extracted from local food by-products, which are renewable resources. It can be used in three ways: as fresh, as dried produce or as a pigment extract for better shelf life, scalability and easy transportation. New color ranges are introduced into the natural dye palette e.g. millennial pinks from avocado pits, terracotta from onion skins and gold tones from turmeric peel. Most food by-product pigments come with an unseen benefit of multiple color options from one food source and often qualify as mordants. Mordants help fix the color into textiles, make them light fast, thus even lesser amounts of chemicals are necessary in the overall dying process. It provides a 2 in 1 sustainable solution for the dye industry.
On the other hand, innovation also takes place at the system level. The singularity of food by-product lays with its easily implementable solution into an existing system for example of natural dyeing. It is all about “hacking” the existing system of garment dyeing by replacing the raw materials. The pigment extraction procedure can still be completed on current machinery without investment into new technologies. Its core function is to be a compatible alternative with lesser environmental impact. Its pigment extracts can be used multi-fold for leather tanning, biosynthetic dyes or screen printing even.
Dyeluxe offers an eco-innovation with its food by-products pigment extracts for natural dyers/dye houses and a social franchise of an applicable regional model that can be replicated in various cities and regions across the globe. The concept of using food by-products is still very new, so Dyeluxe has the potential to become the world’s first food by-product pigment supplier.
Currently, the basic infrastructure set up and mechanism is being outlined to build a regional model in Berlin and validate the regional model’s theory of change in the next 3 years. Once the model has been documented and tested in the following 1-2 years in another region the model will be executed to ensure the right steps were done for replication. Dyeluxe intends to operate in a niche market within the textile dye industry at first. However, it certainly has the potential to expand beyond the fashion industry with natural dyes as the same process can be used for colorants in other industries as well once the pigment extracts are brought into existence. Moreover, the general structure of mapping a region of its food by-products could also be transferred to mapping by-products within the region and finding a fit for it to create circular city models.
With each food by-product pigment there lays the potential to disrupt the fashion industry. The more R&D is conducted and clusters are formulated, the more wider its impacts are created together with its users. While the core of Dyeluxe is sustainable production and consumption in accordance with SDG3, together with natural dyers and dye houses these additional UN SDGs can be addressed:12, 3,9,11,6,7,13,15,8 and 17. With the mapping of regional by-product colorants, eventually a global color map could be created to meet the demand for large scale production sites like industrial dyehouses. Pigment sourcing could be done from multiple locations, this reduces the strain of local dye plant cultivation and assures the scaling opportunity to be in the ring with synthetic dye quantities yet do no harm for the environment and its workers.
