Recycled polyester: an eco-responsible solution?

Our school bags are made in 80% recycled polyester . 80% because some materials like the bottom, which is made of waterproof imitation leather for added strength, cannot be recycled.

Although recycled, it remains Polyester (PET) and therefore a plastic material. Recycling limits the primary production of polyester but will never replace it, the polyester which cannot be recycled infinitely .

Could we use more environmentally friendly materials? An update on our research and experiments on this topic.

What is recycled polyester?

Polyester is manufactured as a fiber for the fashion industry. It makes up 70% of our clothing. It is a plastic material therefore a petroleum derivative. It is made from plastic waste (bottles, clothing, packaging, etc.). Recycled polyester, although recycled, remains Polyester and therefore a plastic material.

Recycling limits the primary production of polyester but will never replace it, as polyester cannot be recycled infinitely. Recycled polyester is available from ocean pollution control. It is therefore more virtuous because, in addition to limiting production, it reduces the amount of plastic present in the environment, allowing it to be "purified."

Our recycled polyester is GRS certified . It provides you with technical, environmental, social and health guarantees.

Why do we use recycled polyester?

We use it in our school bags because it is flexible, fluid, easy to work with, very strong and inexpensive. It allows us to offer sturdy school bags, it is sufficiently rigid to allow an ergonomic design that protects children's backs and our school bags remain affordable in terms of cost.

For this we use a premium version polyester fabric: 900 denier , a tight weave that improves the fabric's strength. We may not realize it, but our school bags are very technical: it takes 132 operations and 72 minutes to make a Caramel & cie school bag.

Why only 80% recycled polyester?

Our school bags are made from 80% recycled polyester. 80% because some materials, such as the bottom, some tabs, and bias bindings, are made from faux leather for their textured effect or abrasion resistance. They are not recyclable due to their polyurethane coating.

But things are evolving and we should soon be able to offer all our collections are 100% recycled , with recycling technology making great strides.

Our school bags are Eco-designed . This means we try to limit the fabric surfaces used as well as the disruptors of recycling that make it complex and therefore expensive or even impossible. All the fabrics and threads used in our school bags are made from GRS recycled polyester.

Having 100% polyester in our school bags is our goal because it would make them easier to recycle, which is currently expensive due to dismantling (it takes almost as long to dismantle a school bag as it does to make one!).

Could we use more virtuous materials than recycled polyester?

Each material has its advantages and disadvantages. To produce sustainably, we must evaluate multiple criteria.

There are 5 main ones that are generally accepted:

• Preserve resources and ecosystems,
• Create decent jobs,
• Offer to as many people as possible (at a controlled cost) products that last,
• Avoid water pollution,
• Preserve the climate (carbon footprint-CO2).

Knowing that we have a criterion on which we will be uncompromising: the materials chosen must allow us to manufacture ergonomic school bags because we don't joke with the children's health .

Despite all our research, recycled polyester remains by far the material that best meets the 5 criteria of a product that is good for the planet.

Let's compare polyester to cotton, for example (although the latter cannot be used to make an ergonomic school bag):

• Recycled cotton and polyester have an equivalent carbon impact
• Unlike cotton, recycled polyester has a very low impact on drinking water, land use, and biodiversity (it takes 6 tons of drinking water to produce 1 kg of cotton). In addition, cotton farming uses pesticides that impact the environment, biodiversity, and human health.
• Cotton is partly produced through forced labor, which is not the case for GRS-certified recycled polyester, which guarantees regulated and verified wages and working conditions.
• Recycled polyester can generate microplastics unlike cotton.
• A school bag generates significantly less than clothing since micro-plastics from polyester are mainly produced during machine washing of our clothes, which does not happen with a school bag.

We've also studied linen, wool, hemp, Tencel, and Lyocell. Recycled polyester from ocean pollution is currently too expensive or too far from our production sites. But we're exploring the solution.

The choice of materials: a complex issue

We can therefore see that selecting an ethical material is a complex task and that we should not rely on our intuitions but seek the support of specialists. Thanks to The Beautiful Footprint who supports us in this process.

We also have to take into account external criteria specific to our profession. We design products for children and this gives us responsibilities . The weight of the school bag is a social issue, so ergonomics and the comfort are priority criteria and influence the choice of materials.

And then being 100% eco-responsible and releasing a school bag for €250 is easy, but what would be the point of all this effort if it's for a tiny minority? Ultimately, the hardest part of all this is staying affordable while ticking as many boxes as possible!