We are beyond proud to have the Dutch minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Sigrid Kaag, wear a dress from Khaloom’s fabrics. The red dress designed by Ronald van der Kemp, known for dressing stars like Katy Perry and Beyoncé, is made from 100% recycled yarns. In the middle of one of the dirtiest industries and largest textile manufacturing countries, Khaloom is upcycling waste into a high end product.
“Raw materials are becoming scarcer and the mountain of waste is growing. We must and can do something about that. This beautiful dress proves that you can make new yarns and high-quality garments from textile waste,” says Minister Kaag.
Khaloom was invited to join the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Minister Sigrid Kaag on the largest Dutch trade mission to India. During the trade mission Sigrid Kaag wore a dress made from Khaloom’s hand woven 100% recycled fabric.
“I am convinced that sustainable and circular entrepreneurship can be serious business in the textile sector. And it offers attractive opportunities for innovative cooperation bet
ween Dutch and Indian companies,” explains Kaag. “I also hope that it makes us more aware and that these kinds of initiatives encourage us all to take a critical look at how and under what circumstances our clothing is made.”
The textile industry is, besides oil and gas, the most polluting industry. Worldwide 40% of clothing produced gets thrown away, and only a shocking 1% of textile is being recycled. That is why Khaloom uses post production waste as the main resource to hand weave new, high-end fabrics. Hand weaving costs zero energy or CO2, only manpower. Machine looming on the other hand can cost 126kwh and can lead to 93kg CO2 emission.
Besides this the textile industry worldwide employs 60 million people. In India 51% of weavers sadly receives less than half of the minimum wage. Khaloom offers her weavers a permanent contract and 2-3 times the minimum wage, setting a new norm. The craft of weaving is also hereby preserved, a craft passed down from generation to generation. The weavers are proud of the work they do!