Collaborate, innovate, expand – these clear-cut objectives embody the aspirational mood of Sorona®, a sustainable fiber brand that puts bio-based materials at the forefront of its mission to marry science and engineering resulting in circular textile solutions.
Sorona®, a bio-based, high-performance polymer that delivers sustainably sourced fabrics, is one of three commercial brands under CovationBio, a newly launched biomaterials company. With more than 20 years as a bio-based sustainable textile solution supplier, Sorona® is a tangible proof point for CovationBio’s guiding maxim to “turn passion into progress.”
Related Articles
From comfort-based fabrics for high-performance apparel to fashion forward looks outfitted in faux fur, the Sorona®portfolio is wide-ranging and prized for its varied performance attributes. Its composition includes annually renewable plant-based ingredients, minimizing its impact on the environment. And Sorona® plant-based fibers are touted as a replacement for spandex, nylon, and traditional polyester.
You May Also Like
It follows that CovationBio is making an impact in more industries than textiles and apparel. The firm recently embarked on a farmer-driven venture with Truterra, an improvement initiative that supports the adoption and success of sustainable, regenerative agricultural practices at scale in the U.S. Through the use of cutting-edge technology, the program assists farmers’ efforts toward environmental protection, and simultaneously promotes supply chain transparency.
Sorona® said it distinguishes itself in the sustainability segment by looking for ways to share best practices with other branded fiber companies or members of the value chain, as “it is a critical element for us and them.”
Here, Alexa Raab, the Director of Communications at Covation Biomaterials, talks to Fairchild Studio about successes across its Common Thread Fabric Certification Program and global Preferred Mill Network, meeting new benchmarks with the SDGs, and partnership with Truterra.
Fairchild Studio: Walk us through Sorona’s brand evolution. Where did Sorona® start, and where is it headed?
Alexa Raab: As CovationBio continues to expand and diversify our business to displace fossil-based materials, we are finding ways to improve our environmental benefits while offering quality, value, and performance to our customers.
Scalability is fundamental to bringing a sustainable business model to our customers making a significant impact on the world. We are already operating globally. Our success in making Sorona® accessible and available is due to our close collaboration throughout the value chain. We are very proud that Sorona® has been at the forefront of sustainable change in the industry and available commercially for over two decades.
Traceability and transparency are also essential to the work we do. We are collaborating closely with our value chain partners to drive traceability. Most recently, our focus has been on establishing our Common Thread Fabric Certification program — Sorona® Agile, Aura, Luxe, Profile, and Revive—and the global Preferred Mill Network. Certified fabrics are guaranteed to have a minimum level of bio-based content and meet high-quality performance characteristics.
This is the type of transparency our customers deserve. The Preferred Mill Network makes it easy for designers to identify mills producing certified fabrics. It’s our global catalog of certified mills offering the full collection of sustainable Sorona® sub branded fabrics.
In just our first year, we saw more than 43 million garments with Sorona® hangtags worldwide and more than 500 mills are certified to carry Sorona® certified fabric to date. There is still more work to do, and our team is expanding its reach into more regions and having conversations with apparel brands every day. We are excited for what is next as more brands integrate bio-based materials like Sorona® into their collections. One thing that is encouraging is the many applications in which brands and customers are using Sorona® – makeup brushes, shoe uppers, bedding, workwear, activewear, and suiting are just some examples.
Fairchild Studio: Tell us about Sorona’s alignment with the United Nations’ SDGs. How does Sorona® work toward meeting its sustainability goals?
A.R.: As a biomaterials company, sustainability and product stewardship are core to who we are. Our Global Sustainability Leader Lauren Johnson and her team ensure our program is science-based and focuses on the most relevant opportunities that will “move the needle” in advancing the materials industry toward a more sustainable state. CovationBio’s priorities are driven by data from life cycle assessments (LCAs) for our products, and our commitments naturally align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly the following four: Decent Work and Economic Growth, Climate Action, Circular Economy, and Life on Land.
Sorona® is 37 percent bio-based, derived from annually renewable crops. Using renewable bio-based feedstocks is important because bio-based products contribute to the defossilization of the global supply chain—decoupling materials production from fossil fuel extraction and reducing global reliance on fossil resources.
Fairchild Studio: What inspired the partnership with Truterra, and what is involved in the initiative?
A.R.: I am excited to share our participation in an agriculture program called Truterra designed to provide visibility into the environmental impact data on 100 percent of the acres supplying corn for Sorona’s bio-based content. The participating farms use cutting-edge technology to improve soil health, protect biodiversity, and potentially sequester carbon. Through this program, farmers receive insights into their crop yields, resource consumption, and outputs including greenhouse gas emissions, soil health indicators, wind, water erosion rates, and more.
Truterra actively promotes transparency and educates farmers using a science-based and data-driven approach to improving farming practices. We see this level of accountability leading to reduced environmental footprints for the farm, and ultimately for our raw materials, and the apparel made using our bio-based resources.
Fairchild Studio: What is next for Sorona®?
A.R.: We have a rich pipeline of products that we are hoping to commercialize in the next couple of years. Our strength is providing a quality, sustainable alternative to traditional materials and we will continue to find creative ways to do this in apparel.
One segment where we are seeing success and growth is with footwear. The launch with Puma for a soccer shoe made with a Sorona® upper along with Susterra® was our first entry into athletic footwear. Other brands like EcoAlf use Sorona® in footwear as well as apparel.
Because Sorona® offers many exciting performance attributes, we see it used across different applications and have a broad range of growth opportunities. Brands like Stella McCartney and Maison Atia value the bio-based faux fur Sorona® made with Ecopel. Blauer USA uses Sorona® for insulation, Lilly Pulitzer has incorporated Sorona® into tops for the soft hand feel and shape retention, and LIVE! in Brazil launched a capsule collection called LiveBIO! that is entirely made with Sorona® Agile fabric. We look forward to strengthening these relationships, establishing new ones, and developing in areas where we can make an impact at scale.
We are focused on and committed to delivering on our promise for a sustainable alternative to traditional fibers like spandex and nylon. Sorona® is proven to keep garments looking new for longer, offers outstanding comfort stretch, a soft hand feel, and dimensional stability. These
qualities are meaningful for designers as they look to strengthen the sustainability standards of their collections with bio-based materials, and we look forward to supporting them in their journey.