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The pineapple plant has been good to us: once a symbol of luxury, it has been made into a traditional textile for use in formal wear, and is widely consumed as food. What if we told you that you can use it for lighting, casual clothing, and décor?
This was the point of Hiblatech, a new company specializing in fiber derived from pineapple leaves, usually agricultural waste (everyone else just needs the fruit). The leaves come from a different species of pineapple, not the red Spanish variety used for pineapple. Pina fabric. It is processed into a fabric such as felt, which can be further processed into a polyester blend such as linen.
Hiblatec's partner in this is Chuck Lazzaro of Asia Textile Mills, a leader in natural fiber processing with over 40 years of experience in the industry. Mr. Lazaro also assisted in the creation of Pinatex, a pineapple-derived leather alternative by Spain's Carmen Hijosa.
Now Philippine raw materials (pineapple leaves from Philippine farms) will be used by a Filipino-owned company. “It's part of the mission,” said Tina Sabre, co-founder of Hiblatech. According to him, 80% of the process behind Pinatex is done here, so, “When I heard that I said, 'Why don't we sell it as a Filipino company?'
The felt and fibers were given to designers who created various objects from them such as toys, clothing, furniture and lamps. These were shown in an exhibition in Makati on January 22. For example, Crete Manila created a lamp with a concrete base reinforced with Hiblatec fiber and paper, resulting in concrete that was light and strong. Edward Sibunga used felt to create a sound panel-speaker, while De Javier created an artwork using fabric for embroidery – Ms. Collectively, the exhibits open up various possibilities for the use of fibres.
Ms. Sabre, who herself was wearing a blouse made of pineapple fiber (the non-woven fabric was woven into the aforementioned polyester blend, then worked on by model-designer Jo Ann Bitagcol) talked about the tests the fabric has gone through, including flammability, water resistance and continuous use (which also includes abrasion testing). While the fabric has met standards for home use, there are opportunities to further strengthen it for hotel and restaurant use (including giving it a coating, which is currently being developed with a German company).
We pointed to the presence of Lakat, a brand of sneakers from Mike and Benj Clapperols, which also uses pineapple fiber. Ms Sabre said that while the couple uses cotton in their blends (whereas HiblaTech uses polyester), they use a non-woven version in the insides of their shoes – the same one HiblaFelt is made from. “We are all here to promote Philippine fiber. This is not about competition etc.”
Because of Hiblatek's potential multiple uses, Ms. Sabre plans to hold workshops to teach more people in other industries where else they can use the textile. She plans to increase production with the accumulation of funds to set up another manufacturing facility. “We are expanding the relevance of pineapple fiber into many other categories,” he said.
Contact Hiblatech https://www.hiblatech.com/ For collaboration opportunities. — Joseph L. Garcia