CBT | Lala Foundation

In the Netherlands, 6.7 billion cigarettes end up on the street each year. This is valuable raw material

that ends up on the street, pollutes the soil and is lost. This is where we come in.

In this circular chain, cellulose acetate, the main component of cigarette filters, is mixed with

discarded cotton from the textile industry to create a new textile yarn. From this circular textile,

interior products are made. The cigarette filters are collected by the LaLa Foundation, through the

WasteBar, (a campaign against litter and promoting circular awareness) and through cooperation

with other parties. The filters are cleaned and then manufactured into a viscose filament by

Materials Factory. Esther Jubbega supervises the process of blending the viscose filament with

fibrous cotton to develop new yarn. From this, new circular interior products are made.

By developing a circular textile from cellulose acetate and cotton we contribute to the solution for

two social problems, namely:

1. Cigarette filters are the largest source of stray microplastics worldwide. The decomposition

of a cigarette filter also releases the toxic substances that have accumulated in it during smoking.

By collecting cigarette filters and making them valuable, fewer cigarette filters will end up in nature

and on the street. This will result in less microplastic and toxins in the soil and food chain, as well as

a reduction in CO2 emissions.

2. The textile industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. Not only does the

production of textiles require a lot of raw materials, but also hectares of land, thousands of litres of

water, pesticides, chemicals and energy.

By developing a circular textile using discarded cotton, we contribute to textile recycling and exclude

the use of new virgin raw materials.

For the development of circular textiles, the LaLa Foundation has entered into a consortium with

The project starts in September 2022.