Ecotextile Talks

Textile sustainability strategist Shivam Gusain argues that the recycling sector has made incineration into a type of all-purpose villain, where the real barriers to recycling are much more practical. Our latest episode fans the flames around textile and clothing incineration and asks whether the textile recycling sector is too quick to blame incineration as the 'bad guy' when the bigger challenge...

  In this exclusive interview, Philip Berman talks to Harsh Saini, the outgoing interim CEO of Cascale, to explore the organization's bold new chapter. Following a strategic rebrand and the implementation of a new governance structure, Cascale is evolving to meet the complex challenges of the modern consumer goods industry. Harsh discusses the "unfinished business" of sustainability and how Cascal...

What's really inside that bargain fashion buy? Or that cheap new World Cup soccer strip? In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, host Philip Berman talks to Steve Lamar, President and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), to discuss the results of new lab tests on counterfeit products, with some quite disturbing findings. He's not just talking about fake logos, but chemicals at u...

In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, we go inside the development of Lenzing's newest TENCEL™ Lyocell innovation - HV100 - a fibre engineered to deliver the texture, drape and authentic wash-down character of cotton which was created in record-breaking time!  Johnny Truong and Julia Ulrich, from Lenzing, walk host Philip Berman through the market signals that they say sparked the idea, the technic...

At the moment, organic cotton farmers in countries such as India and Pakistan earn an average of just $10 00 a year. Meanwhile, premiums are stacking up through the supply chain, brands are charging more at retail, but the people actually growing the crop see only a fraction of the value. In this episode of Ecotextile Talks , host Philip Berman talks to Bart Vollaard from the Organic Cotton Accele...

In this episode Ecotextile Talks host Philip Berman speaks with ThredUp's Chief Strategy Officer Alon Rotem about the company's " resale as a service " model, from white-lable branded resale shops to multi-brand clean-out schemes that can turn underused wardrobes into store credit. They discuss what the real driver is for consumers, how ThredUp's distribution centres work at scale, why brands deci...

Ecotextile Talks, host Philip Berman talks to Frank Michel, CEO of the ZDHC Foundation, about why he thinks cleaner chemistry is becoming a hard ESG requirement rather than a nice-to-have for the global textile value chain. They explore how ZDHC has evolved from its original Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (MRSL) focus into a broader nature-impact lens that links process chemistry to wate...

In partnership with the British Textile Machinery Association (BTMA), host Philip Berman takes listeners on a virtual journey to ITMA ASIA + CITME in Singapore with guests Alex Zucchi of CEMATEX, Jason Kent CEO of the BTMA, and Richard Slack of Fibre Extrusion Technology. In advance of the exhibition which starts on October 28 in Singapore, they explore how European and UK manufacturers are positi...

Host Philip Berman talks to Kim Glas , President and CEO of the National Council of Textile Organizations , about the impact of Trump's tariffs on US textile manufacturing.  Kim discusses the challenges posed by tariff unpredictability, including the effects on investment and supply chains, and the winners and losers in the industry.  She highlights issues in machinery sourcing, the effect of high...

Did environmental campaigners really contribute to a decline in cotton's global share of fibre production?  Well, according to a rather punchy opinion piece in Cotton Grower a couple of months ago, the answer is a resounding, yes. The article claims that environmentalists have been intellectually dishonest and fed a binary narrative of cotton bad, synthetic fibers good….which created pressure from...

In this edition, made possible with the support of Textile Exchange, host Philip Berman is joined by its Chief Strategy Officer, Ashley Gill, and mohair farmer and textile producer Frances Van Hasselt. Frances is at the heart of mohair production in South Africa - a country that supplies more than 50% of that fiber used in the world's textile industry. She is involved in everything from farming he...

While on his travels in Indonesia, our correspondent Shivam Gusain speaks to Philip Berman about his latest  Ecotextile News  article on decarbonising the textile industry, fossil fuel subsidies, and polyester taxation. Speaking within the current context of the volatile tariff war between the US and supply chain countries like China, Vietnam, and Bangladesh, Shivam advocates for fiscal approaches...

Fresh off a flight from the ZDHC Impact Day in The Netherlands, John Mowbray gives a quick overview of the talking points at this week's Amsterdam event to Philip Berman for a short 'from our own correspondent' edition of Ecotextile Talks. Subscribe to Ecotextile Talks podcasts and radio shows by following us on  Apple ,  Spotify  and  Amazon Music . Also, take a look at  our complete podcast arch...

In this episode of Ecotextile Talks our host, Philip Berman , is joined by Shivam Gusain a former innovation analyst at Fashion For Good, and now an independent consultant and writer. The conversation was inspired by his recent substack post entitled: ' Crash Testing the Circular Economy .' in which he argues that we should investe in 'failure', not just success, to reveal the real boundaries of t...

In this episode host Philip Berman sits down with    Dr Talia Hussain  whose recent academic paper on circular fashion sparked lively debate across the industry.  Dr Hussain, a PhD in design innovation and MBA, is known for her critical analysis on the mainstream circular fashion narrative.  Together, they take a deep dive into the promises—and potential pitfalls—of circularity in the textile sect...

In light of their 2024 Annual and Sustainability Report ,  Philip Berman catches up with  Krishna Manda , Lenzing's VP corporate sustainability, and Thomas Matiz , Lenzing's global product sustainability lead, to chat about Lenzing's GHG emissions reporting, what is needed to achieve net-zero, and how Lenzing supports its customers and partners in achieving its climate goals. If you want to trace...

Host Philip Berman talks to Maxine Bedat , Executive Director at New Standard Institute, the official sponsor of the Fashion Environmental Accountability Act , a new bill introduced into the California State Assembly at the start of February 2025 which, if enacted, would become the first law in the country to require brands to engage in "environmental due diligence" concerning their products and s...

What's the best way to Net Zero? In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, host Philip Berman explores the pathway to net zero in the textile industry with Pauline Op de Beeck, Climate Portfolio Director at the Apparel Impact Institute, and wet processing expert and Ecotextile News contributor Phil Patterson They discuss the newly released: " Low Carbon Thermal Energy Roadmap " which provides guidance...

Host Philip Berman discusses the findings of a groundbreaking 2024 study on the problem of plastic leakage in the textile industry with one of its co-authors Dr. Jesse Daystar , Cotton Incorporated's Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer, and Dr. Patricia Holden , Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California , Santa Barbara. We reveal just how signi...

Host Philip Berman explores the fascinating world of biogenic carbon storage in cotton garments with Dr. Richard Venditti , from North Carolina State University , Steve Pires from Cotton Incorporated , and Emily Graham from Carhartt . Together, they delve into the climate benefits of cotton and how it can play a crucial role in the textile industry's sustainability efforts. We cover the following...

In this episode, host Philip Berman sits down with Michael Schragger, Founder & Executive Director of the Sustainable Fashion Academy, to discuss the fashion industry's complex journey towards sustainability.  Fresh off the release of  STICA's Progress Report from the end of 2024, Schragger gives a unique insight into the successes and challenges Scandinavian fashion companies face striving to mee...

Our host Philip Berman sits down with Marie-Jeanne Gaertner, project and policy officer at RREUSE (Reuse and Recycling European Union Social Enterprises) to find out why the textile reuse and recycling sector in the European Union is facing an unprecedented crisis. Gaertner says that a recent open letter to the European Commission and member states, penned by RREUSE, explains why the sector is on...

This episode of Ecotextile Talks explores the legal challenge facing fast fashion company Shein as it considers listing on the  London Stock Exchange (LSE).  In the summer UK based charity, Stop Uyghur Genocide , asked the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to reject any potential request from Shein to list on the LSE.  At the moment, we don't know for sure whether Shein has submitted a request to...

In this episode of Ecotextile Talks, we explore the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD). This significant new European law entered into force on 25 July 2024 and will be rolled out in phases.  Hosted by Philip Berman and featuring Alexander Kohnstamm , Executive Director of Fair Wear , this discussion sheds light on the critical need for companies to uphold human rights and env...

Our host Philip Berman sits down with Claudia Kersten, managing director of the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) to discuss a cotton monitoring project which is literally out of this world.  GOTS is working alongside the European Space Agency (ESA) and artificial intelligence specialist Marple to monitor Indian organic cotton crops from space – using AI and satellite imagery to verify farmin...