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Natural Fiber

Natural Fiber

Natural Fiber comes from plants, animals and insects. We transform it into long threads for textiles and flat sheets for paper.

Did you know?

Rope-making and the use of clothing are older than history and possibly even humans! Both were done by the Denisovans, a group of archaic humans that lived in Asia over 25,000 years ago.

A loosely coiled fiber rope

Ropes and textiles are two of the most important technological advancements for our species

Earth-toned textile with strands
A group of alpacas standing in a shallow stream

Llamas & alpacas provide the people of mountainous regions of South America with wool for blankets and clothing.

A cotton plant with cotton balls growing on it

Cotton grows in clusters of fiber on the plant. Civilizations around the world have used it for thousands of years.

A field of cotton plants
A forest of bamboo
Bamboo mat with a pair of chopsticks on it

Bamboo is a grass that grows as large as trees! It is processed into strips for weaving baskets and mats and also thread for clothing.

A silkworm moth on top of a silk cocoon facing a silkworm that is rising to meet it against a white background

Silk is a highly prized fiber produced by special caterpillars. Originating in what is now China, it has been cultivated since the Neolithic period! For thousands of years, traders risked their lives to sell silk thread and fabric to the western world.

Two silkworm pupae facing each other in front of silk cocoons against a white background