Yarn production

The process where fibres are spun into yarn(s), which are used to create fabrics. Provide information on the fibre types, yarn count and production location.

What you need to know

Environmental impact

The environmental footprint of yarn production is based on the electricity required for spinning. Since electricity consumption varies by yarn thickness and fiber type, we use default values in our calculations.

These defaults take into account different ranges of yarn thickness and whether the fiber is natural or synthetic. Where available, the electricity grid mix of the spinning location is included, using data from Ecoinvent.

Social impact

The social external cost is calculated based on the country of yarn production and the provided fabric cost, which is converted into a per-garment yarn cost, accounting for process losses. We selected ‘manufacture of textiles’ as the reference sector in our database.

If the country you enter isn’t available in our database, we apply a global average that reflects major textile-producing nations. If detailed yarn cost data isn’t provided, we apply a standard cost distribution based on literature, derived from the total manufacturing cost. Transport is not yet included in the social impact calculation.

Exclusions

Due to limited data, the impacts of dyeing and finishing processes on the yarn are not currently factored into the True Cost calculation.