Texon, the leading supplier of nonwoven-based shoe components and technical fabrics, has published its second annual Sustainability Report documenting the results of its environmental efforts in an unprecedented year in business.

The report highlights the company’s key achievements in 2020 – a year dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic – including innovating materials, developing closed-loop projects with customers and reducing high-energy production processes to progress towards Texon’s four sustainability goals for 2025 of:

-Reducing its carbon footprint by 50%.

-Cutting the use of virgin materials by 50%.

-Ensuring 90% of waste is recyclable or reusable.

-Reducing water usage and water waste by 20%.

Faced with fresh logistical and operational challenges created by the pandemic, Texon still managed to:

-Cut its group average water usage intensity (m3/net tonne) by almost 10% compared to 2019, with its site in China reducing water consumption by 48%

-Open a new production facility in Vietnam with solar panels generating up to 45% of the site’s energy needs, energy efficient LED lighting fitted throughout and closed loop water cycles on the factory floor to cool down machinery

-Develop four new sustainable products – Sportflex Eco, Sportflex Bio, X8S and Bioform

-Increase its use of secondary fibres

Throughout 2020, Texon actively explored unconventional, bio-based and recycled content as alternatives to virgin materials, in line with its policy that all developments across new and heritage lines must have a minimum of 50% sustainable content. A key area of focus is increasing the use of recycled materials using post-industrial waste such as fishing nets, plastic bottles, toilet roll ends and sugar cane waste.  The business also reduced the amount of latex in many of its products.

Texon Ecoline, using 85% recycled polyester (rPET), was developed for a customer seeking to close the loop. Ecoline insoles can be returned and re-cut at Texon’s factory, which uses the waste to make more of the same product.

The production of Texon Ecoline also requires 50% less energy than other processes and uses less water and fewer chemicals. Meanwhile, Texon Vogue, a 100% FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) cellulose alternative to leather, emits 93% less carbon than leather during manufacturing.

www.texon.com