Performance Days, the leading trade fair for functional fabrics for sports and work clothing, will offer the popular Performance Forum and informative lectures on fabrics, trends, and technologies to its visitors when it takes place from 28-29 April in Munich, Germany.

For the upcoming round, Performance Days takes on the controversial topic of wool, in particular, merino wool. A keynote topic at the exhibition will be A Responsible Approach To Wool, as sustainable brands exhibit their latest products.

The aim is to encourage exhibitors and visitors to act more responsibly and sustainably in the management of animals, environment and products.

Sustainable concepts

Natural materials used in clothing have recently come under fire. The practice of mulesing of merino sheep or the use of poisonous chlorine to bleach the wool has been reported harmful to the animals and the environment, according to organisers.

“Merino is booming – in sports and in fashion,” organisers say. “At the same time, critical voices are getting louder and hardliners are demanding the abandonment of wool in clothing while denouncing its production and processing.”

The next edition of the fair features sustainable concepts for pure virgin wool and merino that are said to cause no harm the animals or the environment. This is currently a hot topic, according to the exhibition’s organisers, who believe it has never been explored to the full extent before.

Education of the industry

The leading trade fair in the area of functional fabrics, Performance Days takes up this discussion and joins exhibitors in contributing to the education of the industry. In keeping with the motto A Responsible Approach to Wool, Performance Days will provide information about the origin and production of wool, the danger of animal suffering, and the feasibility of an ethically correct, added value chain.

A special table at the Fair's Performance Forum will also highlight the merino suppliers who are certified as being mulesing-free or as companies that don’t use harmful chemicals in the processing of the wool. In addition, at the Performance Gate important certificates for the protection of animals and the environment will be presented.

Presenting the alternative

“After all, there are suppliers that only process and offer wool that has been certified according to the animal welfare and environmental protection standards,” commented Stefanie Sacherow, Senior Project Manager at Performance Days.

“Performance Days is proud to have several of the major producers in the sector as exhibitors presenting their products. In particular, the idea of sustainability is elementary for us as a trade fair for the sport sector.

“This is one reason we are preparing this important topic to present the alternatives as comprehensively as possible in cooperation with our exhibitors. We address this offer equally to the sport and the fashion sectors, as this is a major topic for both areas.”

Lecture programme

Besides the exhibits in exhibition halls, the responsible use of wool is also to be addressed in the expert lectures by Schoeller Yarn, Südwolle, and Textile Exchange.

The series of lectures also includes other sustainability issues, such as the current regulations related to hazardous PFAs (per- and poly-fluorinated plastics).

www.performancedays.eu