Italy’s ERCA helps Patagonia & YKK with sustainable chem-tech REVECOL

Italy’s ERCA SPA, Patagonia, and YKK have announced the successful implementation of ERCA’s REVECOL (Recycled Vegetable Cooking Oil), a sustainable, innovative chemical agent, in YKK’s dyeing processes at their Vietnam production sites. ERCA transforms common waste material, such as exhausted vegetable cooking oil, into an upcycled, certified high performance, safe textile chemical.

ERCA has invested in circular practices to take waste material and use them as feedstocks to create new responsible chemical products. Always searching for new sustainable innovations, REVECOL caught the attention of Patagonia. Driven by the goal to utilise non-extractive chemistry in their supply chain wherever possible, the brand teamed up with ERCA and trim supplier YKK to deploy REVECOL, the three companies said in a press release.

Italy’s ERCA SPA, Patagonia, and YKK have successfully introduced ERCA’s REVECOL, an innovative, sustainable chemical agent, to YKK’s dyeing processes in Vietnam.
This upcycles waste like used cooking oil into a high-performance, certified textile chemical.
REVECOL has a 72 per cent lower carbon footprint than ERCA’s conventional chemical auxiliaries.

Matt Swartz, Patagonia’s colour and material quality manager, said: “We saw an opportunity to build a partnership with an innovator, ERCA, who was pushing the boundaries of sustainability and match them with an existing partner, YKK, that consistently delivers high calibre, quality goods and services. This has proven to be a dream team.

“Through thoughtful consideration we designed our approach and conversion to REVECOL LV-TS to have an outsized impact from the start. The real success is seeing this go beyond Patagonia products and spread across supply chain partners, brands, and consumers. This is one domino to fall in how we do business to save our home planet.”

REVECOL LV-TS has a carbon footprint that is 72 per cent lower than the more conventional chemical auxiliaries produced by ERCA. Today ERCA produces a wide range of high-performance chemical auxiliaries made from used vegetable oil that are ZDHC, bluesign approved, and GRS certified. ERCA is the first company in the world to have GRS certified chemical products, opening the door to circular chemical auxiliaries.

“One of the most rewarding achievements is not only to see that REVECOL can really make a difference, but that leading companies are teaming up with us to utilise it in products that bring the message of sustainability to the end consumer,” said Fabio Locatelli, head of ERCA Textile Specialties Business Unit.

As part of their Sustainability Vision 2050, YKK is constantly working to deploy more sustainable chemical processes in their production. The ability to replace a commonly used dye chemical with a lower impact version was a no-brainer for YKK’s Vietnam management. REVECOL is not only more sustainable, it’s also more efficient, reducing the use of the dyeing auxiliary by 20 per cent to 30 per cent, thus helping to lower YKK’s overall chemical usage.

“We are thrilled to be part of this unique three-way collaboration, exemplifying how true upcycling on a mass-production scale is made possible at the centre of garment manufacturing. We look forward to the expansion of REVECOL across the entire textile industry,” said Mike Maekawa, sales and business development manager of YKK Vietnam.

Visitors to ITMA 2023, taking place June 8–14, can learn more about REVECOL at ERCA’s booth A201 – Hall 5 at Fiera Milano Rho exhibition centre, Italy. A talk moderated by Creativity Lifestyle And Sustainable Synergy (CLASS) with guest speakers representing YKK, Patagonia, and ERCA, will be held on June 10 at 3pm.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)