Even Levi's converts to hemp: jeans made in a mix with cotton on the market

While the Italian government is even arguing about hemp , more and more companies and designers are studying it as a raw material for their clothing. But until now, no one had thought of making jeans out of hemp. Levi's, the company that made jeans an icon of clothing, is now clearing this natural fiber.

Rumors bouncing from overseas indicate that the company is in an advanced stage of study, so much so that last March it already managed to create a pair of pants and a jacket whose label reported a mix of hemp (31%) and cotton. The collection is called Levi's Wellthreat x Outerknown and also has T-shirts created in recycled denim and cotton/hemp blends. But within five years, according to what was declared to Business Insider by the head of innovation at Levi Strauss & Co, Paul Dillinger, hemp could be used 100%.

Work is in full swing to soften the fiber, but otherwise there is no shortage of raw material. Since hemp was legalized in the United States last December, the industry has exploded and there is no shortage of cultivated fields, so much so that there is talk of a potential market of over 13 billion dollars by 2026.

No dramatic turn of events or even association with cannabis for Levi Strauss & Co.’s new advertising campaign. Instead, going back to using hemp means guaranteeing a product with a lower environmental impact. And there are more and more Lohas (Lifestyle of health and sustainability) around, pushing for a new textile economy based on sustainability.

Using hemp, therefore, can provide good answers to environmentally conscious buyers. First of all because hemp plantations require much less water (about 30%) than cotton crops. The use of pesticides is also reduced, with no harm to the soil and the health of farmers. Indeed, in certain lands hemp cultivation is used to reclaim them. In times of climate upheavals, hemp gives hope in terms of adaptation and good harvest results.

The bulk of the work, Levis suggests, is to find a process that makes the fabric soft and wearable: because it's one thing to create hemp rope, another to make fabric for everyday trousers. Imagine for t-shirts. There lies the real challenge. Which at the moment means higher costs than processing cotton.