Japanese company launches empirical trial of using discarded PLA clothing as compost

On October 12, PIECLEX, a fiber manufacturer jointly established by Japan’s Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. and Teijin Frontier Corporation, announced that it will start recycling the company’s fiber clothing products for agricultural and forestry compost. Empirical test P-FACTS (PIECLEX
FAbrics compost technology solutions).

PIECLEX is a material made of plant-derived polylactic acid (PLA). It has the function of converting the energy generated by human body movement into weak electricity, which can produce antibacterial effects. The company has been supplying long-term use textiles to apparel manufacturers and is engaged in the manufacturing and sale of T-shirts, towels, socks, etc. for commercial use according to its own plans.

PIECLEX President Tamakura Daiji said at a press conference in Tokyo: “More than 500,000 tons of clothing products are discarded in the country every year. I hope this issue will attract social attention.”

Specifically, we currently aim to reduce 10,000 to 20,000 tons of clothing waste per year through composting and reduce landfill/incineration. Use PIECLEX
Collect Clothes also works with organizations that support people with disabilities to create employment opportunities for people with disabilities. It is expected that compostable clothing made from the fiber will be used by agricultural and forestry workers to grow crops.
In addition, because the raw material of PIECLEX is polylactic acid, a natural resource, carbon dioxide emissions during the production process can be reduced by more than 30% compared with fibers made from petroleum-based materials.