The value of green fashion

The Liva story demonstrates how innovation and collaboration flow together to make fashion greener and sustainable

Can man-made textile fibre change the world? Birla Cellulose is trying to make it happen through its signature ingredient brand Liva. Launched in 2015, Liva is a path-breaking approach that brings the promise of sustainability to fabric and fashion.

Liva was crafted through an innovative process that cultivates natural fibres formulated from wood pulp. The wood pulp is produced from trees grown specifically for this purpose, thus avoiding exploitation of high-value or conserved forests. Consequently, Liva saves land usage by up to seven times more than cotton and consumes at least three times less water.

It is no wonder that it blazed a trail in the fashion sector! Around the world, garment and retail brands sat up and took notice of this innovative and versatile fibre that flowed like silk and breathed like cotton. The fashion industry was looking for ways to make such a shift from fast fashion to green fashion, and Liva was the answer.

To stay future-ready, Birla Cellulose has continued on the sustainability path. The next-generation Livaeco fibre uses blockchain-based tracking and a unique molecular tracer that enables brands to validate its sustainable and ethical sources. Birla Cellulose also developed a process to use cotton-based textile waste feedstock to make viscose fibres — an innovation that helps reduce waste going to landfill and improves circularity. The result was Liva Reviva, made using 20% of recycled content.

Liva also represented a big operational transition for the company — from the B2B space to B2B2C. Birla Cellulose also built Liva Accredited Partner Forum (LAPF), a consortium of value chain partners encompassing fabricators and weavers.

The company engaged with the entire value chain, from spinners to brands and consumers, to deliver significant value through feedback and collaboration.

It is this entrepreneurial business model that helped Birla Cellulose achieve the highest ranking in Canopy’s Hot Button Report for three consecutive years. Currently, Liva is accepted internationally and receives more than 100 global brand nominations. Today, the Liva tag hangs on garments as a co-brand.

The journey of Liva has been one of reinventing the man-made fibre to maximise value for all stakeholders — from consumers and customers to value chain partners and the environment at large.