INDA, the global association serving the nonwovens and engineered fabrics industry, named Woolchemy as the winner of the IDEA Raw Material Achievement Award.
Woolchemy is a Kiwi-based materials innovation company transforming sheep wool into high-performance, sustainable hygiene materials.
The winning material, neweFibre, is the world’s first hygiene-grade wool – purified to meet the stringent regulatory requirements of the disposable hygiene sector. It also forms the foundation of Woolchemy’s patented materials platform, designed to serve the $126 billion global hygiene market.
Align innovation with nature
A panel of technical experts selected Woolchemy as a finalist, and ultimately awarded it top honours for pioneering the use of wool in single-use hygiene products – a category traditionally dominated by plastic.
Every day, half the world’s population uses and disposes of 2 billion hygiene products. Among those products, 93% of the materials come from petroleum.
“Being recognised by INDA at IDEA 2025 is an honour,” says Woolchemy CEO and Co-Founder Derelee Potroz-Smith.
“neweFibre is the foundation not just of neweFlex nonwovens but of all future Woolchemy materials for hygiene. It’s a testament to what’s possible when we align innovation with nature.”
The perfect solution
In addition, neweFlex delivers compelling performance in diapers, feminine care and incontinence products. As wool mirrors the structure of human skin, with keratin proteins that enhance skin compatibility, neweflex is the perfect solution to meet the growing consumer demand for hygiene products.
Each diaper containing neweFlex includes approximately 1 gram of strong wool and plant-based fibres. The nonwoven material is certified 100% biobased by Beta Analytic.
With over 300,000 diapers discarded per minute and most of them made from petroleum-derived plastic, Woolchemy’s biodegradable and renewable alternative provides a path to circular hygiene design.
“Our technology offers a rare combination of high performance, environmental responsibility and skin health benefits,” says Potroz-Smith. “We’re proud to be working with global partners who are serious about bringing next-generation consumer products to market.”
