In a ground-breaking new endeavour, TEXFAD, a banana textile industry based in Uganda, is leading the way in sustainable and biodegradable textile production, transforming waste banana pseudo stems and other waste materials into high quality sustainable and biodegradable handwoven textile products. Their mission is to mitigate waste, promote sustainability, and empower communities through vocational training.
“…TEXFAD transforms waste banana pseudo stems and other waste materials into high quality sustainable and biodegradable textile products…”
On this note, they offer work based non-formal hands-on skills training for job and wealth creation in Uganda through a Vocational Skills Training Academy that is accredited by the Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT) as a Centre for competence-based assessment in line with the Uganda Vocational Qualification Framework. At this Centre, they focus on training youths and women in various disciplines including textile and handloom weaving.
Uganda is one of the world’s largest banana producers and a world leader in banana consumption. After the harvest, banana stems are usually discarded as waste. TEXFAD has developed technologies for banana fibre extraction and application into the production of high-quality banana fibre textiles and handicrafts including banana fibre cast boards, lampshades, coasters, rugs, and blended fabrics, which are 75% banana and 25% cotton.
Bananas are one of the world’s most wasteful crops. After harvest, almost 60% of banana biomass is left as waste. Worldwide, about 114.08 million metric tons of banana waste-loss are produced, leading to environmental problems such as greenhouse gas emissions, with bananas having a carbon footprint of 0.21kg per pound of banana.
Banana production in Uganda has been rising steadily over time, growing from 6.5 metric tons in 2018 to 8.3 metric tons in 2019. Uganda is said to be the world’s leading producer of bananas, second only to India. Additionally, bananas are the main food crop to over half the population in Uganda. TEXFAD’s commitment to transforming banana waste into sustainable products not only fosters environmental stewardship, but also bolsters job creation and economic empowerment in Uganda, something truly worth going bananas for!
TEXFAD’s commitment to environmental stewardship and economic empowerment in Uganda is truly worth going bananas for!
