Toray Industries, Inc. is working on a “fishing net to fishing net” recycling with a net manufacturer Nitto Seimo Co., Ltd. and a fishery company TAIYO A&F Co., Ltd. It is commonly understood that it is difficult to use fishing nets for recycling, because the resilience and the durability weaken, due to seaweeds adhered to fishing nets collected and difficulties in sorting by material, for example. Toray has developed recycled nylon yarns for fishing, in which nylon resins obtained from discarded fishing nets are partially used, with physical properties equivalent to those of 100 percent virgin materials. Nitto Seimo produces fishing nets using the nylon yarns, and TAIYO A&F uses the fishing nets for experimental proofing.

JCFA News Letter (No.24) February, 2024/Japan Chemical Fibers Association