Garments made from old cola bottles, bamboo and soybeans were the focus of five fashion fairs which opened simultaneously Wednesday morning in Shanghai to start the 2002 Shanghai International Clothing Festival.
The 217 environment-friendly textiles on display included materials developed by the Shanghai Textile Share-Holding Group Company. These germ-proof and deodorant showpieces were made from bamboo fiber, soybean fiber, cashmere and even polyester fiber extracted from cola bottles.
Analysts said that it had become a trend to increase the environmental protection functions of clothes through new high technologies.
The five exhibition fairs which run till Saturday offer a total of 1,400 exhibition rooms for nearly 500 textile companies from 20 countries including China, France, Italy, America and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The items on display cover fashion dress for men and women, children's suits, outside materials, supplementary materials, yarns, fibers and knitting machines.
Hosted by the Shanghai Municipal Government, the 2002 Shanghai International Clothing Festival will officially open here Wednesday night and close on May 3.
(People's Daily April 25, 2002)