Hyosung TNC is moving bio-based spandex toward wider commercial use by replacing fossil-derived BDO with sugarcane-based BDO. The company says the swap cuts the fiber's total carbon impact by roughly 45 to 55 percent compared with conventional spandex, based on an internal life cycle assessment. Independent third-party verification is planned. Production is underway at a textile fiber factory in Vietnam, supplied by a parent company bio-BDO plant with potential annual capacity of 200,000 tons. The fiber is designed as a drop-in replacement, so mills can use it without changing equipment or stretch and recovery specifications. About 50 early adopter manufacturing partners have tested the material. Hyosung sources sugarcane through Czarnikow, with traceability tracked on the VIVE platform. The switch from corn to sugarcane also removes one processing step in BDO manufacturing. Hyosung frames the move as part of a broader push toward biodegradability and circularity, though those goals remain separate from the current bio-based feedstock.
