Approximately 4.5 billion pairs of jeans are sold worldwide each year, according to Maersk Sustainability Insights.
Producing them requires intensive water and chemical processes because they use virgin cotton, dyes, and harmful finishing.
Furthermore, making a single pair of denim jeans requires about 6,186 liters of water—roughly the same amount a person drinks over eight and a half years, assuming each person consumes at least two liters of water per day.
To counter these environmentally harmful practices, Ecoalf is launching Denim for the Planet, a line of fully recyclable jeans made from regenerative cotton, without the use of toxic chemicals and employing only about 750 liters per pair, unlike the over 6,000 liters used on average for a traditional pair of jeans.
“Denim has always been a symbol of rebellion. With this collection, we’re rebelling against the traditional way it’s made: every garment is designed with a purpose, built to last, and designed to be reborn, transforming denim from waste into a revolution,” said Javier Goyeneche, founder and president, Ecoalf.
Ecoalf has, in fact, chosen to make its jeans with a denim composed of 65% regenerative cotton grown in Cádiz, Spain, and 35% recycled cotton obtained from fabric scraps collected in Lombardy, Italy. This blend requires a small amount of water, restores soil health, promotes biodiversity, and avoids the use of spandex, even though the fabric offers comfort, elasticity, and durability.
They dye the fabric using Smart-Indigo, a process developed by Pure Denim, an Italian denim specialist. This technology uses only indigo pigment, caustic soda (NaOH), water, and electricity, relying solely on an electrochemical process and thus avoiding the use of hydrosulfites.
This dyeing process is revolutionary because it uses electricity instead of toxic chemicals to transform indigo powder into liquid dye. For these reasons, the fabric manufacturing phase produces 90% fewer CO₂ emissions, consumes 70% less energy, and uses 30% less water than traditional jeans.
The only byproduct of the process is oxygen, which is neither harmful to the environment nor to those involved in production.
To treat its jeans, Ecoalf uses Jeanología’s laser and ozone treatments, reducing water use by over 60% in the finishing process.
Unlike jeans currently on the market, Ecoalf’s denim garments are 100% single-material, sewn with 100% cotton yarn, and finished with unscrewed metal buttons. Furthermore, the collection contains no zippers or synthetic materials, further reducing its end-of-life impact and making these jeans more environmentally friendly than many others.