Interface Pioneers Plant-Based Carpeting

Global floor covering and carpet maker Interface (Nasdaq: IFSIA), renowned for its leadership in sustainable product development, has created a new commercial product made mostly from plant-based nylon.

63% of the yarn in their new Fotosfera line is sourced from castor plant oil.

Two-thirds of the world's castor plant supply comes from India; it is fast growing and can survive without water for up to 25 days, which makes it a good crop for regions that are otherwise unsuitable for food production.

The Fotosfera product line is installed using Interface's TacTiles modular carpet system - which makes it easy to install, remove, reuse and recycle sections of carpet rather than having to pull up the whole thing if there is a stain or worn area. 

“Fotosfera is a breakthrough product innovation for Interface. It has the good looks and high performance customers expect from our carpet tiles and accelerates one of our Mission Zero aims: to eradicate our use of virgin petro-chemical raw materials in our products by 2020," says Nigel Stansfield, chief innovations officer for Interface. “It also provides sustainable business opportunities for rural communities. It’s still early days but this is compelling proof of how we are pushing the boundaries of what is possible - continually innovating to meet our customers’ demands for ever more sustainable products.”

Inspired by its legendary late founder Ray Anderson, Interface was one of the first companies to publicly commit to sustainability with the launch of Mission Zero in 1994. This was Anderson's pledge to “cut the umbilical cord to oil.”

Interface already sells a line made entirely of recycled yarn, called Biosfera, and earlier this year it launched a series of recycling hubs across North America. It also has a pilot project at the Philippines' Danajon Bank barrier reef, building a community-based supply chain for recycled fishing nets.

For more information about the new Interface product, check out this video: