What Is Viscose Fabric And Is It Eco-Friendly?

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Viscose Fabric Is Breathable

Viscose, also known as rayon, is a plant-based fabric that is breathable and durable. It is derived from the cellulose found in the cell walls of woody plants.

Unlike cotton, it is not harmful to the environment and is therefore considered eco-friendly. However, it is important to understand its pros and cons before buying it.

While viscose fabric is breathable and eco-friendly, its production process has numerous environmental risks. For example, the chemicals used in manufacturing are difficult to dispose of properly.

This has led to concerns about water contamination. In addition, workers are at risk due to exposure to these chemicals. Some chemicals, such as caustic soda, sulphuric acid, and carbon disulfide, are harmful to the skin and eyes.

What Is Viscose Fabric And Is It Eco Friendly 1

It Is Absorbent

Viscose fabric is an environmentally-friendly and absorbent fabric. It is also lightweight and breathable.

You can use it to make quilts or pet bedding. It can also be recycled into the insulation. If you want to go eco-friendly, avoid cotton and wool.

Viscose is a natural fiber produced from wood. However, it isn’t completely sustainable. The manufacturing process for rayon involves trees harvested from ancient and endangered forests.

Many of these forests are already overexploited, which threatens local ecosystems and endangered species. The destruction of forests also involves human rights violations and land grabbing.

Because of these issues, organizations such as Canopy have been working to make sure viscose doesn’t come from high-risk forests. These organizations have partnered with fashion labels like Stella McCartney to conduct life-cycle analyses of alternative fibers.

While it may seem that viscose is environmentally friendly, it isn’t actually biodegradable. Many manufacturers use chemical dyes to dye this material, which is not environmentally friendly.

In addition, viscose comes from trees that take decades to grow and cannot be replaced quickly. The only way to ensure that the viscose you’re buying is sourced from a sustainable forest is to check the label.

It Is Biodegradable

Viscose fabric is a great option when choosing eco-friendly fabrics. This type of fabric decomposes naturally in water and soil. Unlike synthetic fabrics, rayon does not decompose in landfills.

As a result, it releases a powerful greenhouse gas called methane.

While viscose is biodegradable, the production process does use toxic chemicals. These chemicals pollute the air and water.

As such, it is important to recycle any old viscose garments. These fabrics can be reused for bedding, quilts, and insulation. Additionally, recycled viscose is light, breathable, and absorbent.

Like a viscose, a satin or silk material is also beneficial for your skin to breathe. Like your pillows, they should be made with soft quality materials.

A satin vs silk pillowcase for skin is beneficial for getting the utmost comfort.

Viscose is produced using cellulose, which is extracted from trees. It is then treated and filtered to create a fine thread.

The manufacturing process is very polluting and releases toxic chemicals into the air and waterways. One of the most prevalent toxic chemicals, carbon disulfide, has been linked to health risks, including heart disease, birth defects, and skin problems.

The process also consumes 70% of the tree, resulting in a huge waste of resources.

It Is Polluting

A new report reveals that the production process for viscose fabric is highly polluting and exposes factory workers to toxic chemicals.

Many of these chemicals end up in the environment where they can damage soil, waterways, and human health. This pollution is coming from factories in China, India, and Indonesia.

These factories are supplying some of the most popular brands in the world.

To reduce the polluting effects of viscose, consumers can switch to modal, a second-generation cellulosic fiber that’s produced through a closed-loop process.

Modal has a higher quality and is more environmentally friendly than conventional viscose, but the production methods remain the same.

For your bedding as well, you also need to have comfortable material that suits the skin well. Like if you use satin or silk cloth as your pillowcases, it can also give you the comfort you need.

There are many who suffer from acne because of the type of material they use for pillowcases. A satin vs silk pillowcase for acne is very much beneficial.

It Comes From Endangered Forests

It’s not easy knowing which parts of the world’s forests are being used to produce your favorite textiles. That’s why it’s important to know where your fabric is coming from.

Viscose fabric comes from endangered forests, but you probably don’t know that. The fabric comes from forests in Indonesia, Brazil, and Canada.

The production of rayon and viscose involves the harvesting of more than 200 million trees each year. Some of these trees are harvested from ancient forests, while others come from plantations.

Many of these plantations are on peatlands, which has an impact on the climate. It takes about a million hectares to produce just one meter of fabric.

Viscose fabric production contributes to the rapid deforestation of the world’s forests. Intensive plantations for pulpwood threaten the forests and wildlife, and they’re often accompanied by human rights abuses and land grabbing.

In order to address these problems, fashion brands must make sure that the fabrics they use are made from sustainable sources.

Conclusion

Viscose fabric is the third most popular textile fiber in the world. Originally developed as a synthetic replacement for silk, viscose is now an eco-friendly fabric, available in a wide variety of weights.

It is produced from cellulose, which is found in all plants, including trees.

Julie Higgins
Author
Julie is a Staff Writer at momooze.com. She has been working in publishing houses before joining the editorial team at momooze. Julie's love and passion are topics around beauty, lifestyle, hair and nails.