A sustainable development
Imagine if your beautiful, 100 per cent New Zealand wool rug or carpet could be returned to the earth at the end of its life without going into landfill. Bremworth is working behind the scenes to make this a reality.
According to the Ministry for the Environment, it’s estimated that Aotearoa New Zealand generates 17.49 million tonnes of waste per year, of which an estimated 12.59 million tonnes are sent to landfill.
Developing new sustainable products is just one way to reduce our carbon footprint, making things easier on ourselves and the planet.
Already producing high-quality New Zealand wool carpets and rugs, Bremworth works on the belief that it has an obligation to put sustainability top of mind when developing products.
As part of an in-house research-based sustainability programme, the design team has developed two rug prototypes, crafted with all-natural materials and no plastic nasties. This means they are fully compostable.
Dr Kirstine Hulse, general manager of sustainability at Bremworth, helped to bring these rugs into being. Kirstine challenged the design team to make a highly desirable and functional rug using only biodegradable natural fibres and almost nothing else.
She explains just how important this innovation could be. “Our research aims to address barriers preventing our wool carpet from completely breaking down at the end of its life. And if we can maintain the integrity of the materials, it also increases the number of secondary uses for used carpet and significantly reduces volumes of textiles entering the landfill.”
Terra is a truly 100 per cent New Zealand wool rug that’s hand-woven and beautifully textured. Strata is an incredibly soft hand-knotted rug. Both prototype rugs were made without any dyes or plastics by blending natural fibres together. The subtle yet complex colours from sheep’s wool blended with alpaca showcase nature at its finest.
Kirstine says, “Our research is designed to help us build a product range which can be meaningfully re-used or naturally returned to the earth in a way that resonates with our customers – without compromising the important design and performance aspects.”
This development has been aided by some of the country’s brightest minds through the Ministry for Primary Industries, AgResearch, New Zealand Product Accelerator and the University of Auckland.
These beautiful woollen prototypes take Bremworth a step further on the journey towards making products from 100 per cent sustainably sourced natural materials that can be returned to the earth.
0800 808 303 | bremworth.co.nz
