FAQS

SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is a new sustainable, fully-traceable raw material from SEAQUAL INITIATIVE that is made from marine litter, or in some cases from end-of-life fishing nets or other plastics used in aquaculture (such as those used in mussel and oyster farming). SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is made 100% from marine plastic.

Plastic marine litter, or in some cases plastic from end-of-life fishing nets or other plastics used in aquaculture (such as those used in mussel and oyster farming), is sorted into different polymer types. Each polymer type is then compressed into a ‘bale’ (a block) for transportation. The bales are then transported to specialist recycling centers where they are washed and prepared to be turned into ‘chips’ (also known as ‘nurdles’ or ‘pellets’). The process can be different depending upon the type of plastic. In the case of polyester, ‘bales’ of PET bottles are transported to the ‘flake’ manufacturer. Here, the bottles are cut into small pieces called ‘flakes’ and then the bottle caps, labels, glue and any residual contents are separated and removed. The resulting 100% PET ‘washed flakes’ are then transported to the ‘chip’ manufacturer, who melts and extrudes the PET into long spaghetti-like ‘threads’ which are then cut into short ‘chips’. These ‘chips’ are the raw material used by industry to manufacturer yarns or injection molded plastics.

SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is made by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE partners at approved facilities in Europe.

All SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is currently made at SEAQUAL INITIATIVE approved facilities in Europe. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE recognizes the importance of providing local solutions to global problems and global markets and for this reason, is in the process of opening operations for producing SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC from locally-sourced waste at other strategic locations globally.

SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC refers to a range of polymers from SEAQUAL INITIATIVE that are made from marine plastic. SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC can be developed for use in most applications where virgin plastics are currently used.

SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC can currently only be bought in its raw material form (‘chips’) by selected partners. Any company with a SEAQUAL License can purchase SEAQUAL® YARN.

SEAQUAL INITIATIVE operates a Chain of Custody (CoC) throughout the supply chain, from the ocean clean-up to the final retail product. The CoC is a system of procedures and documents that trace the material from its origin to its end use. Our CoC starts with a ‘Certificate of Origin’ guaranteeing that the plastic has been removed from the marine environment. This certificate is signed by the registered organization responsible for the clean-up or the licensed waste management company collecting the marine litter.

Yes, SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is a fully traceable raw material. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE operates a Chain of Custody (CoC) to track the material through all transformation processes and a tracer is added to the polymer before it is returned to industry. SEAQUAL LAB can test products to see if they contain SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC.

Yes, SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC has GRS certification.

Yes, SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is a fully traceable raw material. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE operates a Chain of Custody (CoC) to track the material through all transformation processes from collected waste to SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC ‘chip’. The SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC ‘chip’ also contains a tracer that can be detected by SEAQUAL LAB in polymer, semi-finished and finished goods. In addition, the sale and purchase of SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC and products containing SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC is limited exclusively to companies licensed to do so by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE.

Yes, for each batch of marine litter a ‘Certificate of Origin’ is provided by the registered organization responsible for the clean-up or the licensed waste management company collecting the marine litter. This forms part of SEAQUAL INITIATIVE’s ‘Chain of Custody’ for material traceability.

A chemical tracer that can be detected by SEAQUAL LAB is added to the polymer. This tracer can be detected in polymer, semi-finished or finished goods containing the polymer. Only SEAQUAL LAB know how to detect the tracer.

Yes, products made with SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC (such as textiles made with SEAQUAL® YARN) must be sent to SEAQUAL LAB for certification. SEAQUAL LAB tests for the presence of the tracer to confirm that the product contains SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC. Products made with SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC must also meet the minimum content requirements set by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE. Details of which products must be sent for certification and the minimum content requirements are stated in the ‘SEAQUAL Trademark License and Copyright Agreement’. Once a product has been certified it is given a unique SEAQUAL Certification Number.

SEAQUAL® YARN is a high quality 100% post-consumer recycled polyester yarn containing SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC from SEAQUAL INITIATIVE. SEAQUAL® YARN is almost identical in physical properties to standard recycled polyester and is available in both continuous filament and staple fiber in a variety of sizes and finishes. SEAQUAL® YARN is used in a multitude of applications including apparel and accessories, contract and automotive upholstery, home furnishings and technical textiles. SEAQUAL® YARN contains approximately 10% SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC (from marine litter), the remaining 90% is post-consumer PET from land sources.

• Ocean clean-ups collect the marine litter.
• The marine litter is transported by licensed waste management companies to SEAQUAL INITIATIVE approved sorting centers.
• The waste is sorted into plastics and non-plastics.
• The plastic is sorted into different polymer types.
• Each polymer type is then compressed into ‘bales’ (a large block) for transportation.
• The ‘bales’ of PET bottles are then sent to a SEAQUAL INITIATIVE approved ‘flake’ producer.
• The ‘bales’ of PET bottles are opened, and the bottles are shredded into small pieces (‘flakes’). At this stage, other materials such as the bottle tops, labels, glues used on the labels and any residual waste, such as sand, are removed and separated in a washing process.
• The 100% PET washed ‘flakes’ are then sent to a SEAQUAL INITIATIVE approved ‘chip’ manufacturer (‘chips’ are also known as ‘pellets’ or ‘nurdles’).
• The chip manufacturer mixes the marine litter PET flakes with post-consumer PET flakes from land sources.
• The mixed ‘flakes’ are heated until molten and forced through an extruder, where long spaghetti-like ‘threads’ are formed and then chopped into small lengths or ‘chips’
• The ‘chips’ are sent to the SEAQUAL licensed yarn manufacturer.
• The SEAQUAL licensed yarn manufacturer ‘melt spins’ the polymer chips. Molten polymer is forced through a spinneret (metal block with tiny holes) and viscous threads fall by gravity, cooling as they fall. Thousands of threads are produced at the same time, with between 34 and 134 threads being used to create each yarn. The threads are combined and wound onto a bobbin at high speed (approximately 300km/h).
• The bobbins are transported to the texturing plant, where the yarn is given texture.
• The textured yarn is shipped to SEAQUAL licensed textile manufacturers.

There are currently two licensed manufacturers of SEAQUAL® YARN, ANTEX for continuous filament and VICA for short staple fiber, both of which are located in Spain.

All SEAQUAL® YARN is currently made in Spain. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE recognizes the importance of providing local solutions to global problems and global markets, therefore SEAQUAL® YARN will be produced at other global locations made from locally collected marine litter.

SEAQUAL® YARN is currently available as 100% recycled post-consumer polyester. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE will offer SEAQUAL® YARN in other polymer types in the future.

Yes, SEAQUAL® YARN is recyclable.

SEAQUAL® YARN is made from mechanically recycled PET.

SEAQUAL® YARN is composed of approximately 10% SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC (from marine litter) and 90% post-consumer PET from land-based sources.

Only 10% of SEAQUAL® YARN is made from marine litter because the quality of marine plastic is far lower than that of standard recycled plastic since it has been degraded by the sun and the salt in the water. We have found 10% to be the optimum quantity to enable yarns to be made with the same quality as standard recycled polyester in a wide range of applications. With the introduction of chemical recycling we will soon be able to increase this amount.

Marine litter has been collected from Europe, the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, West Africa and Asia. The 4 main sources at this time are waste recovered from the Nile river in Egypt by fishermen, marine litter from the beaches, coasts and salt marshes of Tunisia, plastic from the Mexican rivers before they get to the ocean and, lastly, fishing nets recovered from beaches in Vietnam. SEAQUAL® YARN is composed of approximately 10% SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC (from PET marine litter) and 90% post-consumer PET from land-based sources. End-of-life fishing gear or other plastics used in aquaculture are not used in the production of SEAQUAL® YARN. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE is transforming PP and HDPE end-of-life fishing gear into SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC for use in NON-TEXTILE SECTORS.

Today, the land-based post-consumer PET comes from plastics recycled from European households, mainly from Spain and France. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE are looking to also include land-sourced PET recovered from our environment, so that we can also support clean-up projects recovering waste lost in our environment on land.

This depends upon the size of the bottle. There are 33 x 1.5 liter plastic bottles in every kilo of SEAQUAL® YARN, 3.3 of which will have come from the ocean, or 72 x 330ml plastic bottles, 7.2 of which will have come from the ocean. However, SEAQUAL INITIATIVE is not a project to recycle plastic bottles from the ocean, it is an initiative to support NGOs and communities who are cleaning our oceans of all types of marine litter. The ocean cleaning partners we work with remove all types of plastic (PET, PP, HDPE, LDPE and PA) as well as glass, metals, rubber and mixed material objects. In some cases, PET bottles represent less than 10% of the litter cleaned from the ocean. When you buy products made with SEAQUAL® YARN you are supporting ocean cleaning, not plastic bottle recycling. For that reason, we prefer to talk about the amount of marine litter cleaned from our oceans, not just the bottles. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE estimates that for every kilo of SEAQUAL® YARN produced, 500 grams of marine litter has been cleaned from our oceans.

Currently SEAQUAL® YARN is available as 100% post-consumer recycled polyester. SEAQUAL® YARN is available as continuous filament yarn and staple fiber yarn. SEAQUAL® YARN is available in a range of sizes and finishes. More details can be found here (SEAQUAL® YARN).

The physical properties of SEAQUAL® YARN are almost identical to those of standard recycled polyester.

For all information about price, MOQ, delivery and technical specifications, please contact the relevant SEAQUAL licensed yarn manufacturer. More details can be found here (SEAQUAL® YARN).

If you are a SEAQUAL Licensee, you can buy SEAQUAL® YARN from the relevant SEAQUAL licensed yarn manufacturer. More details can be found here (SEAQAUAL® YARN). If you are not a SEAQUAL LICENSEE you may request 2 bobbins of SEAQUAL® YARN for lab validation purposes; if after this analysis you wish to purchase more SEAQUAL® YARN you must first become a licensee.

Yes, SEAQUAL® YARN contains a unique tracer in the polymer that can be detected only by SEAQUAL LAB. This tracer can be detected in the yarn, textile or finished goods. All textiles made with SEAQUAL® YARN must be submitted for certification to SEAQUAL LAB.

Go to www.seaqual.org

1. Click on ‘Licensee Area’ (accessible only to SEAQUAL Licensees)
2. Enter your email address and password to log in to your SEAQUAL user account.
3. Click on SEAQUAL LAB.
4. Click on ‘Submit a Textile for Certification’.
5. Complete the ‘SEAQUAL Textile Certification Application’.
6. Click ‘Save’ and then print the completed form. (A copy of your application will be automatically sent to SEAQUAL LAB).
7. Attach your printed application form to an A4 size sample of the textile (or the whole item if you are certifying a product made directly from SEAQUAL® YARN such as a sock or seamless knitted garment).
8. Send your sample with the attached application form to the address shown on the bottom of the form.

You can track your applications online in your SEAQUAL user account.

Yes, products made with SEAQUAL® YARN are certified by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE. All textiles (fabrics or goods made directly from yarn, i.e. socks, seamless garments, straps, cords) made with SEAQUAL® YARN must be sent to SEAQUAL LAB for certification. SEAQUAL LAB tests for the presence of the ‘DNA’ tracer to confirm that the textile contains Upcycled Marine Plastic. Once the textile has been certified it is given a unique SEAQUAL Certification Number. This number must be passed down the supply chain from supplier to customer (with the exception of the end customer). It is not necessary to send goods (garments or other textile products) made from certified textiles to SEAQUAL LAB for certification, the SEAQUAL Certification Number of the certified textile should be used as the certification number for the goods.

SEAQUAL INITIATIVE recommends using 100% SEAQUAL® YARN (or the highest content technically possible). In any case, all retail products made with SEAQUAL® YARN must contain a minimum of 20% SEAQUAL® YARN by weight. If the retail product contains non-textile materials, the minimum content is 20% by weight of the textile portion. In the case of blended yarns, only the polyester containing SEAQUAL® MARINE PLASTIC will be taken into account.

SEAQUAL INITIATIVE recommends using 100% SEAQUAL® YARN in all textiles (or the highest content technically possible). In any case, all textiles made with SEAQUAL® YARN are required to contain a minimum of 20% SEAQUAL® YARN by weight. Please also note that all retail products made with SEAQUAL® YARN are also required to contain a minimum of 20% SEAQUAL® YARN by weight. If the retail product contains non-textile materials, the minimum content is 20% by weight of the textile portion. In the case of blended yarns, only the polyester containing Upcycled Marine Plastic will be taken into account.

All fibers, both natural and synthetic, have the potential to release microfibers during their lifetime. The factors that determine whether microfibers are released, and in what quantities, are mainly related to the construction of the fabrics made with that yarn. Fabrics such as ‘fleeces’ or other fabrics where the yarn is deliberately broken or damaged release more microfibers. Fabrics made without ‘destructive’ finishing processes are more durable and so will release fewer or no microfibers. SEAQUAL® YARN is a high-quality polyester with excellent durability, helping to dramatically reduce or eliminate microfiber release. The two SEAQUAL Licensed manufacturers of SEAQUAL® YARN (ANTEX and VICA) are part of ‘FIBERCLEAN’, a consortium of companies including yarn and textile manufacturers and laundry equipment and water filtration companies. ‘FIBERCLEAN’ is a four-year program backed by the European Union to study and implement best practices for reducing or eliminated the release of microfibers.

Not yet. ‘Textile to Textile’ recycling will be an important tool in reducing the impact the textile industry has on our environment and SEAQUAL INITIATIVE is working in this area. Today, there are challenges to overcome, such as the logistics of returning end-of-use garments and other textile products in an effective way that does not create additional CO2 emissions, as well as how to recycle mixed-material products. Garments that contain more than one fiber-type can be difficult to recycle, especially if the exact contents cannot be guaranteed. Fortunately, technologies to deal with this are advancing. In the meantime, it is important that products are developed to be durable and with a ‘design-to-recycle’ philosophy, achieved by using mono-materials or making it easy to separate the different components ready for recycling when the product reaches the end of its life.

Yes, all SEAQUAL® YARN is GRS certified.

All SEAQUAL® YARN is GRS and OEKO-TEX® class 100 certified.

Yes, all SEAQUAL® YARN is certified to OEKO-TEX® class 100.

SEAQUAL® YARN and products made with SEAQUAL® YARN are available exclusively to SEAQUAL Licensees. Any company that wishes to buy, sell or promote SEAQUAL® YARN or any product made with SEAQUAL® YARN must become a licensee by signing a ‘SEAQUAL Trademark License & Copyright Agreement’. This license permits the holder to buy and sell SEAQUAL® YARN and products made with SEAQUAL® YARN, it also grants the holder the right to use the SEAQUAL INITIATIVE names, logos and copyright materials.

Any company that wishes to purchase, sell or promote SEAQUAL® YARN or use SEAQUAL INITIATIVE names, logos or copyright materials for marketing purposes must sign a ‘SEAQUAL Trademark License & Copyright Agreement’.

You can apply for your license at www.seaqual.org, by clicking the “Become a Licensee” button in the top menu.

SEAQUAL® YARN and products made with SEAQUAL® YARN are available exclusively to SEAQUAL Licensees. In order to gain access to SEAQUAL® YARN and the use of the SEAQUAL name, every member of the supply chain is required to sign a ‘SEAQUAL Trademark License & Copyright Agreement’. The license is designed to ensure material traceability and to protect the integrity of SEAQUAL INITIATIVE and all licensees.

Material Traceability:

1. Licensees can only buy or sell products made with SEAQUAL® YARN to other licensees. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE has a database of all licensees and can quickly check if someone claiming to use SEAQUAL® YARN is not a licensee.
2. All textiles made with SEAQUAL® YARN must be submitted to SEAQUAL LAB for certification. Certified fabrics are given a unique SEAQUAL Certification Number.
3. Licensees must only purchase textiles or textile goods made with SEAQUAL® YARN if it has a SEAQUAL Certification Number.

Communication:

1. Licensees must always communicate about SEAQUAL® YARN and SEAQUAL INITIATIVE honestly and correctly. Dishonest or incorrect communication can be damaging to all licensees.
2. Licensees must communicate their support for SEAQUAL INITIATIVE, they must not take our story and the story of our community and make it their own. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE is about raising awareness of the problem of plastic pollution and the people and organizations who are fighting it.

Some applicants have experienced problems when making their application using Internet Explorer. If you experience problems and are using Internet Explorer, please try another browser, for example Chrome or Firefox. If the problem persists, please contact digital@seaqual.com.

The license normally lasts 2 years and is automatically renewed for another 2 year period if it is not terminated by either party.

The license is available to any registered company (with the exception of manufacturers of mattress ticking and/or and textile involved in the manufacture of mattresses). The license is not currently available to individuals or to sole traders.

Yes, for textiles there are 3 types of license: a standard textile license, an automotive interior textiles license and a merchandising license. You will be asked which type(s) of license you require when you make your application.

1. Go to www.seaqual.org.
2. Click on ‘Become a Licensee’
3. Complete the application form and click send.
4. RECEIVED: You will receive an email letting you know we have received your application.
5. APPROVED: When your application has been approved you will receive an email with a link to the license you must sign.
6. SIGNED: Please sign the license using the supplied ‘DocuSign’ digital signature technology, the license signed by you will be sent back to SEAQUAL INITIATIVE by email.
7. GRANTED: Once SEAQUAL INITIATIVE receive the license signed by you we will countersign and return it to you by email. When you receive your license signed by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE you a SEAQUAL Licensee.

It normally takes 1 week for an application to be APPROVED. Once we receive the SIGNED license, it takes 1 or 2 more days before your license in GRANTED.

If the goods being imported, distributed or retailed are clearly branded with the brand name of an existing SEAQUAL Licensee, the importer, distributor or retailer is not required to be a licensee.

No, retail consumers are not required to be licensees.

Yes, the brand whose products are made with SEAQUAL® YARN must always have a license.

Only if you are an importer, distributor or retailer and you are selling goods that are clearly branded with the brand name of an existing SEAQUAL Licensee.

Only if you are selling to an importer, distributor or retailer and the goods you are selling are clearly branded with the brand name of an existing SEAQUAL Licensee.

1. Being part of a global collaborative community dedicated to cleaning our oceans and helping local communities.
2. Being listed on our website www.seaqual.org as a company collaborating in the fight against plastic pollution.
3. Having access to SEAQUAL® YARN and products made with SEAQUAL® YARN.
4. Having the right to use the SEAQUAL INITIATIVE names, logos and copyright materials.
5. Having access to the SEAQUAL Licensee area at www.seaqual.org where you can:
   • Create your own company profile.
   • Access the database of all SEAQUAL Licensees.
   • Textile manufacturers can access ‘SEAQUAL LAB Online’ for easy submission and tracking of Textile Certifications.
   • Download copyright marketing materials such as hang tag, poster and roll-up designs and videos.
   • Download useful documents such as the SEAQUAL Brand Guidelines, a copy of your SEAQUAL License and GRS and OEKO-TEX® certificates for SEAQUAL® YARN.
6. Receiving support for the creation and approval of your marketing and communications.
7. The possibility to sponsor specific ocean clean-up or educational projects and create specific marketing content for your company.

Argentina Trademark No. 3918469 
Class 23: Yarns for textile use
Chile Trademark No. 1337235
Class 23: Yarns for textile use
El Salvador Trademark No. E-2020186712
Class 23: Yarns for textile use.
European Union Trademark No. 16.008.501
Class 23: Yarns and threads for textile use.
Class 24: Textile goods not included in other classes (not including fabrics); Bed blankets; Tablecloths; Piece goods made of non-woven plastic material; Piece goods made of woven plastic material.
European Union Trademark No. 18140929
Class 12: “Cars; car seats; upholstery for vehicle seats; coverings for car seats; car safety seat for children; covering for car safety seats for children; prams; pushchairs; covers for baby carriages; covers for prams”
Class 17: Recycled plastics; Plastic material in extruded form for use in production; Recycled plastics for use in production; Plastic substances, semi-processed; Plastics in extruded form for use in manufacture; Injection moulding plastics; Plastic fibres, other than for textile use; Threads of plastic materials, other than for textile use.
Class 20: “Beds, bedding, mattresses, pillows and cushions; mattress toppers; cots; head support cushions for babies”.
Hong Kong Trademark No. 305334057
Class 23: Yarns.
International Trademark No. 1334598 protected in Japan, China and the United States of America
Class 23: Yarns and threads for textile use.
Class 24: Textile goods not included in other classes (not including fabrics); Bed blankets; Tablecloths; Piece goods made of non-woven plastic material; Piece goods made of woven plastic material.
International Trademark No. 1334598 (subsequent designation) protected in South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Philippines, Switzerland, Norway, Russia, Canada, Colombia.
Class 23: Yarns and threads for textile use.
International Trademark No. 1531344 protected in United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Serbia and Turkey.
Class 12: Cars; vehicle seats; upholstery for vehicle seats; seat covers for vehicles; safety seats for children, for vehicles; safety seats covers for children, for vehicles; prams; pushchairs; covers for baby carriages; covers for prams.
Class 20: Beds; mattresses; pillows; cushions; mattress toppers; cots for babies; head support cushions for babies.
Mexico Trademark No. 1334598.
Class 23: Yarns for textile use.
Panama Trademark No. 282663-01
Class 23: Yarns for textile use.
Peru Trademark No. 297409
Class 23: Yarns.
Spain Trademark No. 4064665
Class 17: Recycled plastic substances; plastic in extruded form for use in manufacturing; semi-processed plastics; threads of plastic materials, other than for textile use.
Taiwan Trademark No. 109052649
Class 23: Yarns.
Uruguay Trademark No. 515995
Class 23: Yarns for textile use

Yes, SEAQUAL INITIATIVE provides every SEAQUAL Licensee with a copy of the SEAQUAL Brand Guidelines. These guidelines must be followed when communicating about SEAQUAL INITIATIVE and SEAQUAL® YARN. The SEAQUAL Brand Guidelines can be downloaded from your user-account on our webpage, www.seaqual.org.

Yes, all marketing materials and communications must be approved by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE before use. Please send material for approval to digital@seaqual.com. Social media posts and marketing materials supplied by SEAQUAL INITIATIVE do not need to be approved before use.

Yes, one of SEAQUAL INITIATIVE’s key objectives is to create a single voice in raising awareness of the problem of plastic pollution and the people and organizations fighting to solve it. SEAQUAL INIATIVE and our partners rely on your company to voice your support for the initiative and our partners. It is not permitted to refer to the work of SEAQUAL INITIATIVE or our partners without making specific reference to SEAQUAL INITIATIVE.

It is not permitted to change the name of SEAQUAL® YARN or promote your product’s use of plastics recovered from our oceans without communicating your use of SEAQUAL® YARN.

Yes, details are included in the SEAQUAL Brand Guidelines.

SEAQUAL INITIATIVE supplies SEAQUAL Licensees with digital files of designs for hang tags, posters and roll-ups, these are ready to be printed/produced by the licensee when and where required. SEAQUAL INITIATIVE does not supply physical marketing materials. Videos and images are also made available. All of these marketing materials can be downloaded from your user-account at www.seaqual.org.