More than 7 years dedicated to research in natural dyes for the fabrics&garment industry.
We are committed to help to move forward to a sustainable and just society of well-being, contributing to an accelerated transition to sustainable lifestyles.
The Greendyes process is the result of the search for excellence in terms of efficiency.
WHY NATURAL DYES WERE NOT USED BEFORE IN THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY?
Our natural dyes can be used in a wide variety of textiles…
Our natural dyes can be used for:
Transparent Supply Chain: All our raw materials are of natural origin.
We only accept new raw materials if:
1) Provides the maximum colorfastness.
2) It is economically viable from the industrial point of view.
3) We can ensure that it meets all the environmental and social justice criteria.
We make it easy: If something is simple, is good. We try to simplify and group processes, optimize workflows, reduce manufacturing time and use existing machinery. The whole process is done with the maximum simplicity:
Attitudes are transformative:
Values
-Evolve & improve: continuous research, testing, developing…
-Responsibility & Fulfillment: humanization and transparency.
-Cooperation for common objectives.
Vision
-Contribute to a sustainable and just society of well-being.
-Take care of life, and welcome humanity in all its diversity.
-To contribute to the accelerated transition to sustainable lifestyles.
Mission
-Developing technology at the forefront of international research.
-Finding the best raw materials that comply the international quality norms and cradle to cradle principles.
-To reach viable models of production and consumption.
-Working only with suppliers and customers with the adequate degree of compromise with sustainability.
We offer the best dyeing experience.
The end goal of any company should be to create products that support a delightfully diverse, safe, healthy and just world, with clean energy, soil, water and air – equitably, economically, ecologically, and elegantly enjoyed, right?
We are commited to benchmarking our products for safety to humans and the environment, for the sustainability of manufacturing processes, and for recycling.
Greendyes is developing a strategy to optimize its final products and its whole process to generate positive impacts, following the Cradle to Cradle principles.
MATERIAL HEALTH
1.- All the raw materials we use are natural.
2.- All the raw materials we use come from sustainable resources.
3.- All the raw materials we use come from environmental and socially certified producers.
In this way we ensure the absolute traceability of the raw materials we use.
All our dyes are natural, the raw materials are identified and characterized, and they do not contain any toxic element.
Our natural dyes are easily integrated into the natural environment contributing to their “metabolism” and, therefore, they are bio-assimilated after use.
This means that if, for example, apply our dyes to an organic cotton t-shirt, after use it will become a fertilizer for the environment.
WATER STEWARDSHIP
In general the apparel industry has serious negative effects on watershed health. The dyeing process in particular consumes a great deal of water and creates effluents that can contaminate local water sources.
Water is a precious resource for all living beings;
And it will be much more in the future.
We do not use any of the usual mordants (they are toxic), even more, all the raw materials are natural, they contain no toxic substance or mixture… therefore, all the effluent water of our dye process is only loaded with plant substances and minerals.
With a simple sand filter the water becomes clean again and can be reused;
still more, the sand loaded with vegetable and mineral nutrients is a perfect fertilizer.
With all those companies in the textile sector with which we collaborate, we demand maximum respect for water, the implementation of filters and the signing of codes of environmental and social behavior. With the right design, all effluents can be sufficiently clean to reuse them over and over again.
MATERIAL REUSE
All materials used in making any type of product have economic, environmental and social cost&value.
Each time a material is incinerated or consigned to landfill, its inherent value is lost.
Material Reutilisation in the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) Certified Products is about converting linear systems into circular systems, so that the value of good materials is maintained or even increased.
Because our natural dyes do not contain any toxic element but, on the contrary, they are easily assimilated in nature, the clothes dyed with our processes can easily be converted into a nutrient.
“Eliminate the concept of waste”, helping to create products that are made entirely from rapidly renewable materials or recycled materials, where 100% of the product can be safely returned to nature or eventually recycled into new products.
SOCIAL FAIRNESS
Social Fairness in the textile industry is a complex topic.
It is very difficult to achieve a change, but the ambition remains.
To reach a positive impact on communities and ecosystems it is necessary to encourage working teams with suppliers and customers too, to make relevant adjustments and thereby continuously improve working conditions and business practices.
Please, if you want to know more about our social implications, visit the section
“Social project” on this website.
CLEAN AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Energy is a critical factor in textile production.
We use 100% renewable energy in the manufacture of our dyes and pigments.
We work for the optimization of the energy efficiency of our dyeing process. Our dyeing process is very short (1 hour) and it is done in cold, so we help our customers reduce the total amount of energy needed. This is good not only for the environment, but also for them.
Part of this strategy is to increase the share of energies coming from renewable sources, as well as to diminish its Greenhouse Gases emissions (GHG).
On one hand, we already purchases electricity from a utility selling only renewable energy; in the same way, we requests our clients (dye houses and retailers) to commit to purchase renewable energy to power dyeing processes when Greendyes are used.
We do not use fuels onsite, and are committed to minimize its need also in the future.
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Natural colours vs. synthetic colours: Using synthetic dyes is cost-effective and may allow to your textile a lower price…, but part of good business practice is finding solutions for your needs that are sustainable and that has the least negative impact on the environment.
Natural dyes vs. synthetic dyes: natural dyes are perceived as harmless and safe for the environment. We have solved the common problems of the classical way of natural dyeing: all the raw materials are traceable, non toxic, environmentlly safe and social fair labor.
What touches the skin?: Synthetic dyes cover the fibre just as it does a polymer paint, coating the base material with a uniform layer. By contrast, the molecules in natural dyes combine with the fibres, not covering it, but bonding to it. In the case of synthetic dyes, what touches the skin is not the fibre, but the synthetic dye, generating allergenic reactions. With the natural dyes what touches the skin is the natural fibre and/or the natural pigment.
Taking the right choice
1) Fading: Natural dyes are aesthetically superior to synthetic dyes: they evolve and mature well and develop a characteristic patina when exposed to sunlight and normal use, creating a patina that provides a pleasant appearance, with slightly irregular tones. Natural dyes fade softly and unevenly, leaving lighter shades that are just as beautiful, if not more, than the original color.
2) Harmony: Natural dyes have a range of colors that are much more compatible and harmonious than chemical dyes. The natural dyes are more aesthetic, because they are not unique hues, and so the natural colours convey harmony, not only call attention by its brightness. The natural and harmonious combination makes a high value for the consumer. Natural colours always offer shades and ranges of hues impossible to achieve with artificial colourings. The colors obtained from natural sources tend to be softer and subtle, richer in a chromatic range. Synthetic dyes often produce striking colors. Natural red, for example, will include blue and yellow, whereas a chemical red will only contain red pigment. The “impurities” of natural dyes, which may comprise from 5-25% of the dye, consist of other hues that are similar to the main one, and it is these mixtures that make natural dyes so beautiful and create their harmony with neighboring natural colours. Each plant provides an amazing diversity of shades. These colors and shades are subtle and tend to harmonize with one another.
3) Shade: Like wine, which contains many phenolic compounds that give it the complexity of aroma and color, natural dyes also contain a multiplicity of polysaccharides which are responsibles of the complexity of color, of the relief and of the maturation of color and aging and wear of the fabric. Natural dyes make different shades all along their life. When these natural dyes are exposed to the sun light and to wear, they leave lighter tones, which makes them to look beautiful in different way than their original colors. Like Denim does. The slight color differences of a dyed lot to another is also a positive aspect to consider.
4) Intensity: Natural color is inherently more muted than chemical color, which looks very stark. Colors obtained from natural sources tend to be earthy and subtle. So, if chemical colors are used, while the desired effect is a “natural” look, it will be necessary to mix a variety of colors in imitation of nature and also artificially create some wear. Natural dyes are good for washing and sunlight. In our case we have managed to reach the colors fastness factor to the same level as the chemical dyes. But the use&abuse of a naturally dyed clothe makes the garment even more attractive.
5) Lasting: Color created from natural elements lasts much longer than chemical dyes. The wear effect in a natural dyed fabric gives to the apparel a new life and color while it becomes aged. The synthetic dyes fade all the color at the same time, so the effect is not of aging, but of a lost of beauty. Moreover, synthetic dyes, when at all degraded, are full of byproducts that are directly or indirectly proven to be health hazards; such hazardous compounds are not present in the Natural dye degraded byproducts. Natural dyes completely degrade under natural conditions.
6) Price: Natural dye materials normally are scarce and expensive. For example, cochineal is more costly per ounce than gold. Synthetic dyes are readily available at low cost, resulting in a less costly rug to produce. Our dyeing procedure is comparable in cost to the synthetic dyes.
7) Fastness of color: “classical” natural dyes do not endure washing or sunlight. Our natural dyes fulfills the standard rules of the global textile industry, reaching a washing fastness of 4-5 (maximum is 5) and a sunlight fastness of 6 (maximum is 7).
Beneffits of the natural dyes
Benefits for the environment: Natural dyes have minimum environmental impact, since they come from natural sources; they are not harmful to the environment, they are biodegradable. The natural dyes are obtained from renewable sources that can be exploited without the consequent harm to the environment. Natural dyes are biodegradable.
Consumer benefits: the use of natural dye avoids allergies related to chemical products. Due to the absence of toxic waste, naturally dyed fabrics are more pleasant and beneficial for the skin. Clothing is one of the primary causes of dermatitis and allergic reactions (due to resins and formaldehyde).
Producer benefits: it is not toxic, preserving the health of the workers (inhalation and contact), unlike the commonly used chemical dyes. There are no dermatological reactions even during their preparation.
