According to Evolved By Nature, we’re surrounded by petrochemicals. Conventional chemical companies have been creating chemicals from coal tar for 200 years, and there are now more than 80,000+ harmful chemicals derived from fossil fuels. Conventional chemical finishes give clothes certain desirable qualities. These substances are incorporated into virtually every item of clothing; however, they aren’t necessarily safe for people or the environment. 

Evolved By Nature lists the following two examples to demonstrate the issue: 

A proprietary chemical is applied to Rayon clothing to help wick moisture away from the wearer’s body. It is listed by the manufacturers as potentially cancer-causing when inhaled and advises workers to avoid skin content. 

Substances that don’t cause visible irritation can still have drastic effects, and many are hiding in plain sight. Brominated phenols are textile finishing chemicals that are being studied for their endocrine-disrupting activities. They mimic the body’s naturally occurring hormones, with many linked to numerous adverse human health outcomes. Even if a person manages to avoid these chemicals directly, they enter waterways via wastewater systems and find their way into the food we eat and, subsequently, our bodies. 

The company believe it’s time for conscientious chemistry to catch up. Their patented Activated Silk™ Technology involves extracting pure silk protein from organic silk cocoons and maintaining it in a stable liquid form. Now producible at a commercial scale, the company are using it to replace harmful textile finishing chemicals that are standard in the fashion industry, many of which also hinder biodegradability and contribute to environmental pollution. 

Activated Silk™ Technology is considered good for people, products, and the planet due to the biocompatibility of silk protein. Since there is no harm to living systems, it does not pollute waterways, and it contributes to waste reduction by using silk from cocoons that would otherwise be discarded. 

Activated Silk™ delivers an array of high-performance benefits to garments and accessories made from a variety of fibres, including enhanced vibrancy, improved colour fixation, faster drying, enhanced wicking, better temperature control, anti-pilling, anti-shrinking and wash durability. Not only does the switch from conventional finishes to Activated Silk™ reduce the use of synthetic chemicals, dyes and plastics, which will, in turn, generate less waste, but garments look and feel better, are easier to care for and stay in your closet and out of landfill for longer. 

So far, Activated Silk™ has developed 27 chemicals from molecules harvested from silk cocoons and configured them in 75 patented ways. With hundreds more applications on the horizon, so they say, Activated Silk™ has the potential to replace unhealthy chemicals in a range of products we use every day, from packaging to household appliances—all with minimal environmental impact and no risk to human health.