What is “biodegradable” and what is not is quite complicated!

What we do know is that not everything degrades well under all conditions. For example, sometimes it breaks down underground but not in seawater. We also know: even if the fibers will break down, this does not mean you can call it biodegradable. Harmful additives, such as many dyes and finishes, will still keep it from being allowed in the “green waste.

A common term for an endless cycle from raw material to product to resource is “cradle to cradle. Simply put, this has 2 cycles: either the industrial cycle (reuse and re-/upcycling), or the “return to nature. We do the latter by “biodegrading” materials. In this video you can clearly see how this works with a wool sweater:

Also note the seams: sewing threads, labels and other accessories can thus be killjoys…. See also the elastane threads in the above photo of biodegradable jeans.

And if you want to learn more about (the difference between) bioplastics and biodegradable plastic, the following is a video I recommend: