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A North Carolina company is on the leading edge of helping build a hemp farm-to-fiber-to-finished good value chain in America. Bear Fiber was created in Wilmington, N.C., by one of the world’s preeminent authorities in the hemp field, Guy Carpenter, who brought decades of experience working with the fiber around the globe and understanding the benefits brands and consumers are interested in.

Along with hemp subject matter expert and business partner Patrique Veille, he co-founded the company in 2017 in order to “be on the forefront of hemp fiber engineering to yarns and textiles and consumer products,” Carpenter said. “We want to be a reliable supplier of consistent hemp fiber in multiple grades to the spinning industry.”

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Unifi execs extol virtues of REPREVE® brand

Jay Hertwig, senior vice president of Commercialization at Unifi Manufacturing, Inc., presented “The REPREVE® Difference” during an Outdoor Retailer webinar last week.

Unifi’s REPREVE brand is a performance fiber made from 100 percent recycled materials, including post-consumer plastic bottles and pre-consumer waste. They are also certified and traceable.

Since the brand’s launch, the Greensboro, N.C., company has transformed more than 20 billion bottles into REPREVE fibers, Hertwig said. Starting with two brands – Patagonia and Polartec – in 2007, Unifi now has more than 700 brand and retail partners using the product globally, he added.

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Experts: CBP’s import suspension may bode well for W. Hemisphere

Last week, the Americas Apparel Producers’ Network (AAPN) hosted its latest Fireside Chat, “Traceability and Transparency” that covered the recent issuance of a Withhold Release Order (WRO) by U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP).

The WRO pertains to all merchandise containing cotton or cotton products from Xinjiang, and the impact this will have on trade to and within the Western Hemisphere.

Subject matter experts included Nicole Bivens Collinson, president of International Trade & Government Relations at Sandler Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., and Chuck Rogers, Americas director of Technical Consulting & Supply Chain Solutions at Bureau Veritas Consumer Product Services. They both explained the reasons the recent ruling could offer competitive advantages in this hemisphere for those entities that put in place the right tools to increase visibility and measure supply chain practices.

Contempora Fabrics: TS Designs’ latest stop on supply chain tour

Part 4 of TS Designs’ supply chain journey occurred this week, when company founder and President Eric Henry stopped at circular knitting partner Contempora Fabrics in Lumberton, N.C.

As part of the company’s 10,000 Pounds of Cotton initiative, launched late last year, Henry is putting to action words that he speaks frequently – that is, having a transparent, traceable and local supply chain. This week’s iteration of TS Designs’ webinar series, “The Harvest: A Gathering of Conversations for the Future of Cotton,” featured Alex Whitley, Contempora Fabrics’ vice president of sales.

STA remains virtual (but valuable) to members as 2021 cranks up

The Southern Textile Association (STA) remained “virtual” in 2021 while remaining valuable to its 500+ members through its educational, information and networking events.

The latest was its annual Winter Technical Seminar, with one speaker presenting each day last week as part of the STA’s Lunch & Learn Series.