PUTRAJAYA: Fibre-rich pineapple leaves can be used to weave the future of textiles and sustainable fashion, a renowned textile artist said.
Derived from the agricultural waste of the pineapple fruit industry, weaver Lynelle Barrett said the fibre-rich pineapple has a long history in the use of textiles worldwide.
"The yarn produced from fibre-rich pineapple leaves is more environmentally friendly. It can also produce higher quality products like denim, clothes and furniture.
"By upcycling pineapple leaf fibre, this will reduce waste. It could also supplement farmers' income and provide environmentally friendly yarn.
"There is not much awareness on this but through the symposium, I was able to spread exposure on the benefits of using yarn produced from fibre-rich pineapple leaves," she said when presenting her paper on the second day of the 8th Asean Traditional Textiles Symposium.
Barrett collaborated with Nextevo International, an agricultural waste specialist start-up based in Southeast Asia, to promote the use of fibre-rich pineapple leaves in textiles.
She, also shared her exploration of pineapple leaf fibre yarns for use in naturally-dyed handwoven cloth. She said the yarn could also be combined with any fibre in a standard mill to produce eco-friendly materials.
"Like normal weaving yarn, you can weave any product from fibre-rich pineapple leaves. The ethos of it is really interesting and with this the industry of textile, weaving and textile can be sustained.
"Why make things that we already have? We should be doing things that are sustainable instead. That's the goal."