Laundry bags made from discarded fishing nets and plastic bottles retain microplastics released from synthetic fibers.
Skizo laundry bags are made from discarded fishing nets and plastic waste, capable of retaining microplastic particles during the washing process. Image source: Skizo.
The startup Skizo, created in UPTEC – Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto, created a bag for washing clothes that collects microplastics released by the fibres and avoids sending them to rivers and oceans. The bag was produced from discarded fishing nets and plastic collected from the Portuguese coast and beaches by local fishermen, which are later transformed into textile material by Northern companies.
In a statement, UPTEC clarifies this Tuesday that the synthetic laundry bag “avoids the sending of small pieces of plastic for rivers and oceans”. According to the company’s website, a bag is equivalent to ten plastic bottles and one kilogram of discarded fishing nets.
Quoted in the document, André Facote, CEO and co-founder of Skizo, says it is estimated that 35% of microplastics released into the ocean come from the wear and tear of synthetic textiles during washing. “These microplastics are ingested by fish, which we then consume,” he said, adding that this bag is a first step to help solve this environmental problem.
According to André Facote, to use the bag, fill it with about two-thirds synthetic clothing and put it in the machine and other garments. As the bags are made with a thin layer of polyamide (textile made from mesh) with openings of about 50 micrometers, the fibers that can be released from synthetic clothes are retained in the bag and can be discarded for plastic recycling”, he assures.
The technological company’s next steps in the development phase involve studying the possibility of “giving a second life to the microplastics collected in the bag”, as well as investing in the production of bathing suits from discarded fishing nets. So far, the brand, which began its product line with the development of trainers, has sold to several European countries and Brazil, the United States, and Canada.
The startup has also created beach bags produced with plastic from the ocean, recycled cotton and linen, and this month intends to launch a new design of trainers to customize. The products are only produced after ordering, so that “only the resources necessary for market demand are used”, says its co-founder.
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