Polyester claims 52% of the global fibre market. As the most common fibre in the world, it also represents a significant portion of the 73% of textiles that are landfilled or incinerated annually. A synthetic fibre derived from petroleum, polyester does not naturally break down in the environment, and the production of virgin fibres also perpetuates our reliance on fossil fuels. 

So the industry needs other solutions, including utilising alternative feedstocks such as textile waste or biobased feedstocks. Fibres made using biobased feedstocks are called biosynthetics. Biosynthetics include a range of different biopolymers such as PHA, PLA, PBS and Bio PET, which each have their own unique properties and are produced using techniques such as bacterial fermentation or converting starch to lactic acid through polymerisation. 

Although there are partly biopolyesters that are available on the market, there are no 100% biopolymers at scale. Work is still needed to validate the performance of these biopolymers in fabric applications as well as to validate their end of use pathways such as industrial or home composting.