Finnish sustainability pioneer in sustainable workwear, Touchpoint, and innovation company Spinnova have today introduced their first demo product - the Tapio apron at the Gastro Helsinki event. “The apron, made from Spinnova’s highly sustainable fibre, is very likely the world’s most ecological piece of workwear to date,” Spinnova says.

The objective of the collaboration was to make the world’s most sustainable workwear collection. The Tapio prototype apron, named after the ancient Finnish god of the forest, is 100 % wood-based, made without harmful chemicals and quickly biodegradable.

“Its most interesting circular feature is the fact that the apron can be recycled into new fibre in the Spinnova process, without dismantling. The apron contains no materials that shed microplastics and has no plastic or metal parts to weaken its recyclability. The Tapio apron is also undyed and uncoated,” the company adds.

“Every detail is carefully considered so that there is nothing unnecessary in the apron. We think it’s beautiful in its simplicity and sustainability,” says Touchpoint’s CEO, Outi Luukko. 

“Touchpoint was one of the first brand owners to start collaborating with Spinnova in 2018. Spinnova has found a common value foundation, and Touchpoint’s brave and open-minded willingness to make trials important factors in the collaboration,” the company says.

“Touchpoint wanted to join our journey long before we knew much about the technical or commercial development of our fibre and wanted to publicly introduce a demo product before knowing when a collection is possible. This calls for a passionate approach on sustainability from a textile brand,” comments Spinnova’s CEO Janne Poranen.

“We are born curious and have grown to turn challenges into possibilities. We need solutions that don’t burden our environment and that can in the future replace, for example, cotton production. We started with an apron that helps us raise discussion and spread awareness of the possibilities this will offer to a more ecological workwear scene and the entire textile industry,” concurrs Luukko.

Another demo product will follow the Tapio apron, and a complete commercial workwear collection is possible a bit further down the road. Spinnova is now in the pre-commercial stage and planning its first commercial production facility.

Spinnova is a Finnish, sustainable fibre company that has developed an ecological breakthrough technology for manufacturing cellulose-based textile fibre. Spinnova’s patented technology includes 0% harmful chemicals and 0% waste or side streams, making the fibre and the production method “the most sustainable in the world”, according to the company. The fibre is also recyclable with the Spinnova process without harmful chemicals. Spinnova’s raw material commitment is to only use certified wood or waste streams.

Spinnova was named a World Changing Idea by the Fast Company in 2019, and earned the  Sustainability Achievement of the year by ISPO and Scandinavian Outdoor Awards in 2020.

Touchpoint was established 2008, the company provides sustainable workwear solutions that represent the new era. Some Touchpoint case references are Hesburger, Viking Line, SOL Palvelut, Finavia, AirPro, NoHo Partners and Scandic. Touchpoint is also building a closed-loop solution for domestic textile waste in B2B segment. The recycling facility, Rester, starts operating in the beginning of 2021.

www.spinnova.fi