OnceMore®, the pioneering circular textile recycling system, has announced its expansion into the hospitality industry with a groundbreaking new partnership with PM & Vänner, a sustainability-driven hotel and Michelin-starred restaurant in Småland, Sweden, to provide a scalable solution to the sector’s textile wastage problem.
The circular textile recycling system, OnceMore®, will be collaborating with the hotel and restaurant group to create a revived material from used textiles to drive the sector towards greater circularity and avoid unnecessary waste. According to data from the European Commission[1], textiles have the fourth highest impact on the environment and climate change, after food, housing and mobility. With the average European throwing away 11kg of textiles each year, OnceMore® was founded with the goal of enabling a circular textile system by moving used fabric through a cycle of returning, reviving and reducing.
Part of Södra, the forest industry group based in Sweden, OnceMore® is the world’s first industrial-scale circular textile system aimed at significantly reducing the millions of tonnes of textile turned to waste every year. Used textiles are collected from hospitality operators, such as PM & Vänner, broken down into fibres, and revived by combining them with renewable wood cellulose from Södra’s responsibly run forests. The result is a OnceMore® material that can be used to create products that are either recyclable or biodegradable – closing the loop and reducing textile waste.
The ground-breaking technology was launched in 2019 with 3% recycled textile content but due to their ongoing commitment to sustainability, OnceMore® has invested to increase the proportion of recycled content in their product. By 2025, they aim to offer a pulp consisting of 50% recycled textiles – having already hit their previous target of 20%. With their expansion into the hospitality sector, OnceMore® intends to increase their contribution towards a more sustainable textile industry through new collaborations within the industry, with the goal of processing 25,000 tonnes of textile waste by 2025.
For OnceMore®’s first hospitality partnership the group is delighted to be working with PM & Vänner, the Swedish hospitality group comprising of a hotel, restaurant, bakery, rooftop bar and events offering. Since the group’s inception the focus has been on working towards a sustainable society and minimising its impact on the environment, making them an exemplary partner for the system.
PM & Vänner was founded in 1992 with a focus on sustainability from the outset, with their founding philosophy based on the three cornerstones of forest, lake and meadow – taking inspiration from the surrounding Småland region. In addition to their work with OnceMore®, the hospitality company is eco-certified by both KRAV and Nordic Swan Eco-Label ue to their work focusing on both the environment and social and financial sustainability. With the belief that businesses should always be driven with the ambition of using resources responsibly with minimal environmental impact, PM & Vänner’s partnership with OnceMore® is part of the hotel’s wider commitment to sustainability as a whole.
Lotta Lyra, President & CEO of Södra, commented: “The hospitality sector produces a vast amount of textile waste every year and whilst most companies aim to recycle, a vast majority ends up in landfill due to the mixed composition of the materials. OnceMore offers a solution to this with our pioneering technology to separate out the different fibers and combining it with wood from Södra’s members responsibly managed forests, creating a high-quality textile pulp. We are delighted to be working with PM & Vänner to further enhance the group’s sustainability policies. The partnership showcases what can be achieved and sets the benchmark for other hospitality venues going forward.”
Angeline Elfström, Business Development Manager at OnceMore, commented: “As part of OnceMore’s commitment to reducing textile waste, we’re excited to partner with PM & Vänner as part of our wider expansion into the hospitality sector. Now as we embark on working together with more hotels and restaurants, we’re proud to begin this journey with a partner as well-esteemed as with PM & Vänner.”
Monica Carlsson and Per Bengtsson, Founders of PM & Vänner, commented: “”During our 30 year long history, sustainability has always been on the top of our mind. Throughout all these years Södra has been an important partner where we have collaborated to create unique activities and events for both customers and members. Now this new, extremely exciting project will take our collaboration and sustainability work to a new level.”
For more information on OnceMore or to discuss becoming a partner please visit www.oncemore.se
[1] Source: EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles (March 2022)