From the Sicilian soil in which citrus trees sink their roots and the scent of orange blossom drifts through the air, grow the fruits that inspired Orange Fiber, whose projects with a high degree of innovation and sustainability are making their way across the world. The yarns and fabrics obtained from citrus pastazzo — a by-product of the juicing industry — position the company downstream of a food industry that strongly characterises Sicily, the region the founders come from, which produces around 700,000 tonnes a year in Italy alone.

From the original idea of using orange waste to produce fabrics, with the aim of making fashion more sustainable, the innovative small and medium-sized enterprise based in Catania has come a long way in its eight years: today Orange Fiber has established relationships with international companies and is looking to the future and to ever more sustainable growth, both environmentally and economically. It does so also thanks to LifeGate's consultancy on production processes, while it has also joined the LifeGate Way ecosystem, the group's subsidiary that works with sustainable startups.

Orange Fiber looks far ahead but keeps its roots firmly planted in beloved Sicily, the place where the production facility was built and where ideas, people and circumstances converged to bring this project to life: a fashion student, Adriana, with the intuition to develop sustainable fabrics for fashion from oranges and to add value to her homeland; a photograph by an agronomist lamenting his inability to sell on the market the citrus fruits left in the fields; a meeting with Enrica, who had a background in communications, experience in international cooperation and a desire to make an impact through her work. It was 2014, and Italy was alive with the energy of Expo around food supply chains and sustainability.

Enrica herself, co-founder and today chief executive of the company, who steers its choices and strategies, shared with us this experience that speaks of the circular economy, innovation, the future and sustainability.

How did the idea for Orange Fiber develop?

Orange Fiber was born with the idea of creating more sustainable materials for fashion, by reusing production waste and thereby reducing the use of virgin raw materials. The first phase was very theoretical: it involved conceiving the process and experimenting in the laboratory, in collaboration with the Politecnico di Milano, and took shape with the patent — first in Italy and then in other citrus juice-producing countries — for the process of extracting spinnable cellulose from citrus waste in the food industry. The second phase saw the founding of the startup, which took place in 2014, fundraising, the creation of the prototype and pilot production, until in 2017 the fashion house Salvatore Ferragamo produced a capsule collection using Orange Fiber fabrics. That was when we stepped into the market, and in 2019 a new round of fundraising allowed us to expand further and, progressively, thanks to the funding and recognition we received, we grew into what we are today: an innovative SME.

The partnership with Lenzing Group, signed in 2021, allowed us to consolidate an industrial process in which part of the wood cellulose used in textile production is replaced by cellulose produced from pastazzo, thereby improving the sustainability of the finished product: even though it comes from certified forests, wood cellulose consumes a valuable raw material. This same logic can be applied to various other products — for example, we would also like to replace polluting, synthetic, plastic, petroleum-based materials, such as those found in polyester or nylon.

What process leads to the creation of orange fibre?

The cellulose extracted from Orange Fiber's citrus pastazzo becomes a fibre resembling a ball of fluff, which is then transformed into yarn and fabric. It is possible to produce a one hundred per cent Orange Fiber fabric, but material blends are studied to give the fabric specific characteristics according to the client's needs. For example, a blend with silk offers a softness and greater lustre. A blend with other cellulose fibres can meet the demands for vegan, animal-free or organic products. Everything depends on the brands, their stylistic choices and their values. Orange Fiber always maintains supervision of the process and control of the finished product, so as to guarantee transparency, traceability and a quality certificate that the company will use by applying the Orange Fiber label to its garments, communicating a message of sustainability and environmental responsibility.

How do you work on the sustainability of the fibre extraction process?

Our activities are at a relatively early stage of development, so we are working out how to optimise them. We have embarked on a process of analysing and assessing the impact of our work in order to secure a sustainable future for ourselves, both economically and environmentally. In particular, we are analysing and evaluating water consumption, carbon footprint, process efficiency and the impact of waste products, so that we can make the most of every resource and generate value at every stage of the process. Our products, like our processes, are highly innovative, which means constant research and development work is needed to continuously optimise and improve our model. We use, as our benchmark for optimisation, the industrial extraction of cellulose from certified virgin wood, which at present is technologically more efficient than extraction from citrus pastazzo, primarily because wood contains a greater quantity of cellulose, but also because it operates on much larger volumes and facilities and on the basis of processes that have been developed and optimised over several decades — bear in mind that the viscose process dates back to the late 1800s. The use of virgin wood, however, in the case of uncertified wood for example, is one of the causes of deforestation. Our work of assessment, evaluation and adaptation is necessary to understand what to improve in the next step forward towards increasing production capacity. The mentoring programmes we have undertaken also help us along this path, improving our managerial skills.

What does the present and future hold for Orange Fiber?

Despite all the uncertainties and difficulties that have affected the fashion world and beyond, 2021 brought us great satisfaction and recognition. We used this past slow-moving year to enter competitions and apply for grants, and we're pleased because we're heading towards an increasingly European and sustainable future. We won the Vogue Yoox challenge 2021 thanks to the innovation of our product, we are among the finalists of the Social Innovation Tournament, organised in partnership with the European Investment Bank (EIB), and of the Microfiber Innovation Challenge by Conservation X Labs, and we created a limited-edition tie collection with the traditional Italian made-in-Italy brand E. Marinella. As early as 2019 we were included in the H&M conscious exclusive, a capsule collection by the major brand made with new fabrics from sustainable sources.

Our ten-year goal is to produce a raw material from alternative, sustainable sources and food waste, and to do so in a highly efficient way. We want to ensure that every component of the process can be valorised — using biomass for energy production, for instance, building a plant that uses the highest possible percentage of orange waste, improving energy efficiency, and reducing water consumption. This is also why we are trying to forge ties with Italian and Catanese enterprises that, through their own processes, valorise raw materials and have, compared to fruit pressing, a more advanced level of processing and a higher technological content. For example, our chief technology officer and board member, Andrea Bonina, has experience in extracting active ingredients for cosmetics and nutraceuticals from Mediterranean products, including oranges. We believe that creating a synergy in this direction can be useful and constructive for a more sustainable, efficient and innovative future.

Which direction is the fashion world heading in?

Fashion is moving in the direction of sustainability, across the board. We are convinced that the increased consumption of sustainable and alternative fibres will be driven by growing awareness on the part of both brands and end consumers, but also by the growing supply of fabrics made from sustainable raw materials. To create an impact, large supply chains and large groups need to be involved — results can only be achieved when there is a convergence of interests among all these players. Indeed, if a brand's demand for a sustainable product is not met, it will be impossible for a single producer to respond to that demand. But if the entire fashion supply chain is pursuing sustainability, every producer will be able to work on this aspect, whether at the level of source raw materials, in dyeing methods, or in reducing water use. If only luxury brands do it, the process comes across as something beautiful and aspirational, but consumers want to find sustainable products in their everyday experience — meaning in more accessible brands too. Our ideal customer is the luxury brand, and that is where we started, but we have come to realise that everyone today is moving towards sustainability.