Standardisation of natural dyeing for textiles will pave the way for a sustainable tomorrow

Ever since the world became a global village with the advent of the internet and new-age technology, businesses all over the world have seen all-around growth in the past few decades. However, with an increase in opportunity came the responsibility of selling and buying genuine products tested against well-defined standards across industries.

The textile industry is also no exception when it comes to manufacturing standardised products that are tested for their quality through a series of certification protocols. The testing and certification of the products are not only in the interest of the buyer but also help brands become synonymous with authenticity and trust. Until a few years ago, it was difficult to decipher if a certain textile product was coloured using synthetic or natural dyes.

Textile colourants (natural and synthetic) have added value to the desires of consumers. In ancient times, the processing of dyeing was done using colours from natural sources until synthetic dyes were introduced into commercial practice and started being used widely by textile dyers. Almost all synthetic colourants are synthesised using petrochemical sources and pose a grave threat to the environment. Hence, the growing consciousness of preferring eco-friendly products has renewed the interest of consumers and manufacturers in the use of eco-friendly natural dyes. Following the increase in demand and awareness, commercial dyers and textile export businesses have started re-looking at using natural dyes for dyeing a variety of textiles and enhancing the market for eco-friendly colourants.

Not only do natural dyes prevent environmental hazards, but they also produce soft shades that are skin-friendly compared to synthetic dyes, which are available at an economical price but often cause skin allergies. The extraction of colour components from the source in natural dyeing is an important step to optimise the colour yield. The impediments in creating trust in the global markets towards natural dyes have been a gradual process that has been through the journey of formulating certification protocols for natural dyes that are indigenous to India.

Any standardisation in our country cannot be called foolproof unless it has achieved the parameters set under the Bureau of Indian Standards, which is the apex body for setting up standard protocols for all consumer products. A special panel was also set up to prepare certification protocols for indigenous dye products by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The journey started as early as 2007–08 when we roped in IIT Kanpur to develop standards for testing natural dyes. This is the first project in the world under which a certification protocol has been developed for natural dye products.

My association with the Textile Specialty Chemicals and Dyestuffs Sectional Committee, TxD 07, BIS Committee of the Textiles Department for the last 7 years has resulted in achieving significant milestones as a nation. After extensive work, the committee has been successful in formulating three benchmarks on natural colours, which include Standards on Natural Indigo, Rubia Madar, Katha, Lac, Punica Granatum, Rheum Emody, Canna Indica, Gulmehandi, Teak, and Arjun Bark.

India, being a project leader in the standardisation of natural materials for textiles, has also developed three ISO standards on natural dyes. These include the standards for Madder, Catachu, lac, and Punica Granatum. The demand for natural dyes has increased tremendously over the past decades. This has created a need for standardisation as there is a vast pool of players and products in the market. The presence of the ECO logo along with the ISI Mark on a product dye indicates that it offers the best quality requirements as specified in the relevant Indian Standard and is eco-friendly, which consumes less water and energy in its making.

It is due to hard work and determination that the textile industry in India has started paying special attention to the use of natural dyes in place of chemical dyes. Our country is taking giant leaps in propagating the wide use of natural dyes, in line with the intention of the Indian government. When we use synthetic dye, 5.6 kg of carbon footprints are generated by dyeing 10 kg of cotton fabric.

Currently, we have numerous natural options available for natural dye substitutes. Among many things, a lot of money will be required to reduce the carbon footprint during the production process. It has also been proven in life cycle analysis (LCA) reports that the use of natural dyes can reduce the carbon footprint manifold as compared to synthetic dyes.

(The writer is a member of the BIS committee & group leader of the natural dyes mark and ISO standard and co-founder of AMA Herbal)