The first fully recyclable backpack from Swiss bag manufacturer Freitag is not made of recycled truck tarpaulins or PET bottles as before. All parts of the new backpacks called Freitag Mono[PA6] – from the waterproof fabric to the straps and buckles – are now made of a single material, polyamide 6, and are fully recyclable without waste. When all of the company’s life-extending services, such as Repair and S.W.A.P., have been exhausted and the product reaches the end of its life cycle, it returns to the open material loop via the Freitag take-back service and can be mechanically recycled into reusable raw polyamide 6.
The basic idea of Freitag Mono[PA6] is that the functional and durable backpack can be recycled as a whole without the need for extensive disassembly. The smallest components, such as the adhesive dots of the lamination and the printing ink of the inner label, are not made of PA6, and glass fibers are added to the slider of the zipper for reinforcement. However, the proportions of these other materials are so small that even mechanical recycling will be possible without chemical additives. According to the manufacturer, the first 1500 units of the first circular backpack will be available in the spring of 2024, along with a repair and take-back program.
Freitag was founded in 1993 and soon became known worldwide for its bags made from used truck tarps.
