Otto collaborates on 50% cotton waste in new yarn

Dietenheim, Germany – 29 October, 2024 – A cotton yarn that consists half of used textiles: This is what the Dietenheimer Spinnerei Gebr. Otto and the Recycling Atelier of ITA Augsburg are working on. The raw material that employs them thrives magnificently in Germany: around 1.6 million tons of used textiles are collected every year, and the trend is rising. The annual harvest volume of cotton, on the other hand, has remained constant for years. Cotton cultivation also requires a lot of water and energy and is only possible under the right climatic conditions. A yarn made from used, discarded textiles, so-called post-consumer (PCR) cotton, has a significantly better environmental balance. The development project has been funded by the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) since this autumn.

Growing cotton field right on their own doorstep
As a cotton spinning mill, Otto Bros. is familiar with the annual harvest of raw cotton: over the past 20 years, this has fluctuated relatively constantly between 100 and 120 million bales. There is not too much room for improvement, explains Otto Managing Director Andreas Merkel: "Acreage, water and the right climatic conditions are limiting factors."

At the same time, a "cotton field" is growing inexorably right on our own doorstep: used textiles. Around 1.6 million come together every year in Germany alone. A large truck can transport around 20 tons of textiles. To move 1.6 million tons, around 80,000 trucks would be needed. The corresponding queue of vehicles would be several thousand kilometers long.

Too valuable for the bin
There is no question – Germany is a country rich in raw materials, thanks to its used textiles. So far, this reservoir of resources has remained poorly used, as Dr. Georg Stegschuster, head of the Recycling Atelier of the Institute of Textile Technology in Augsburg (ITA) explains: "Currently, almost three-quarters of the 1.6 million tons of used textiles end up in landfills or are incinerated. Just one percent of used textiles come in a closed cycle, which means that an old shirt becomes a new one. Our goal must be to significantly increase this share," emphasizes Stegschuster
Otto Bros. and numerous other textile companies in Germany take a similar view: The Dietenheimer Spinnerei regularly receives inquiries from customers looking for tailor-made circular solutions, for technical yarns as well as for cotton.

Don't throw away the towel so quickly
The project that Otto Brothers are now tackling with the ITA's Recycling Atelier deals with Otto's flagship product: cotton.
A circular solution for a towel is being sought. Fibres are to be extracted again from disused terry cloth and spun into a cotton yarn. In the end, a new towel is to be created.
Since early summer 2024, the project partners have been working on producing a so-called PCR cotton yarn. PCR stands for post-consumer recycling, i.e. of worn-out, used textiles. This yarn should consist of half recycled fibers and have a medium fineness, which is ideal for a towel.

A feasibility study by the Recycling Atelier has shown that such a yarn is technically feasible. The Augsburg textile experts also showed how great the economic and ecological advantages of such a yarn made from PCR cotton are. Georg Stegschuster explains: "To grow cotton, you need a lot of water. On average, 10,000 litres of water go into one kilo of new cotton fibres. If we work exclusively with recycled cotton fibers, the water consumption is a fraction of that: 600 liters."
Further advantages can be expected in terms of energy consumption and CO2 equivalent. For a recycled cotton yarn based exclusively on used textiles, the values are one tenth of what would be necessary for a new cotton yarn.
With these results, his institute was also able to convince the German Federal Environmental Foundation, which has been funding the project for twelve months since autumn of this year.

Potential meets practice
The project group is currently developing and refining the necessary processes. At the beginning there is mechanical textile recycling: This includes in particular the cutting and tearing of the disused textile so that new fibres can be created. A white towel is a single-origin product and is comparatively easy to disassemble into its individual parts.
Otto Brothers develops the corresponding spinning mill preparation and the process for spinning the recycled fibres. These have different properties than new raw materials. In particular, the recycled fibers are significantly shorter. They have a different surface structure and thus different adhesion and sliding properties than the new raw material with which they are combined during spinning.
The first tests went well. Andreas Merkel: "We assume that we will achieve a good result with our mixture of the required fineness." How the new development is ultimately received by customers depends on its quality and how it is to be processed. "A yarn with a high recycled content must not differ from a cotton yarn made from 100 percent new raw materials."

recot2 as a role model
The Otto Managing Director knows what he is talking about: Otto Brothers have had their recot2 yarn in their portfolio for more than ten years. It consists of 25 percent recycled and 75 percent virgin organic cotton. In terms of the finished textile, recot2 textiles save 5,000 litres of water per kilo. recot2 yarns are used by well-known underwear and clothing manufacturers. According to the customers, it behaves no differently than a cotton yarn made from new fibers. The recycled material at recot2 is pre-consumer waste, i.e. selvedges and bobbin residues.
Otto Bros. has learned one lesson from the market launch of recot2: "We have had recot2 in our portfolio since 2009," reports Andreas Merkel. And: "However, we have only seen the great demand for five to ten years." The Dietenheim spinners are sure that yarns made of PCR cotton will be in demand. "Perhaps," said Angela Merkel, "we may need more patience here as well."