Walmart wants to turn a greenhouse gas into clothing - KTLA Los Angeles
Walmart wants to turn a greenhouse gas into clothing
How’s this for wearing of the green?
Walmart is partnering with a California startup to capture carbon dioxide — a greenhouse gas — from factories and convert it into clothing.
San Leandro’s Rubi Laboratories has come up with technology to capture CO2 and turn it into yarn.
Many businesses now capture CO2 emissions and bury it underground. Rubi, by contrast, strives to put the gas to good use.
“At Rubi, our goal is to ensure a thriving future by restoring Earth’s ecological balance with reimagined supply chains,” Rubi CEO Neeka Mashouf said in a statement.
“Walmart’s ability to mobilize positive impact across its supply chain of diverse U.S. partners could be massively impactful in scaling our production and delivering on our commitments.”
This is still in the test stage. Rubi says its technology can capture 90% of CO2 emissions, but it has yet to produce yarn at an economically sustainable scale.
That’s what Walmart brings to the equation. Nobody does scale like the country’s biggest retailer.
“The brand pilot will test Rubi’s fiber performance in a prototype garment, with a goal of producing garment samples,” Andrea Albright, Walmart’s executive vice president of sourcing, said in a blog post.
“If successful,” she said, “a larger apparel collection could follow and be available in our stores.”
That’s an impressive and novel approach to fighting climate change — and props to Walmart for taking a leadership position on a potentially impactful response to arguably the most important issue of our time.
Rubi Labs has raised $13.5 million from investors, and has received interest from Patagonia, H&M and Urban Outfitters.
But Walmart, because of its size and economic clout, takes things to a new level.
“We see great potential beyond apparel as these pilots could have implications across so many products and industries — packaging, building materials, food and even the creation of new raw material,” Albright said.
“The possibilities are staggering, and we’re excited to see where this journey takes us as we work toward a more sustainable and equitable future.”
If nothing else, points for trying.
I, for one, would pay a modest premium for clothing that helps protect the planet.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”