CITEVE, the Portuguese textile and clothing technological centre, has launched a large-scale collaborative bioeconomy project, with funding of €138 million, including €71 million from the Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) approved by European Commission.

Named Be@t (Bioeconomy at Textiles), the ambitious project focuses on taking the textiles and clothing industry into a new era to set ‘a new rhythm of change in all segments across the sector’, according to CITEVE’s general manager, Antonio Braz Costa.

Mr Braz Costa says that Be@t will: “Boost the development of added value products from biological resources instead of using fossil raw materials, while keeping in mind the need for the production of high-quality products and the expansion to new market opportunities."

In the project, CITEVE leads a consortium of 54 entities which involves companies, universities, technological institutes, and other partners, who initiated their working sessions calendar at CITEVE's facilities in Vila Nova de Famalicão, Portugal.

“These actions are very important steps for the enormous change we are starting to make in the textiles and clothing industry and in three years will revolutionize the whole sector, from feedstock to design, R&D or production lines," adds Mr Braz Costa.

Braz Costa admits the bioeconomy project implies huge challenges for creatives, researchers and developers, and an enormous investment. Furthermore, Be@t will foster the matching of both market and legal demands related with environment and planet conservation. The project is also expected to introduce a new chapter in raw materials as well as new techniques, technologies and equipment for producing or processing new biobased textile structures. As a result, CITEVE says, the investment will generate considerable market opportunities for the sector as it drives progress in sales strategies and promotion actions in different countries, which will allow the showcasing of ‘Made in Portugal’ textiles and clothing.

www.citeve.pt