Since our inception here at MONC we’ve thought and talked about acetate way more than a person should — we’re ashamed to admit we’ve dreamt about it most nights, too. Now there’s a new kid on the block that’s not only replacing acetate in our minds, but also in our frames.
OUR MATERIALS: BIO-ACETATE
PLEASE WELCOME...BIO-ACETATE
OUR MATERIALS
Meet bio-acetate — the bio-based, bio-degradable, preferable offspring of acetate — which we’ve used for 100% of our new collection. *
* Oh, and 100% of our future acetate frames too.
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WHAT IS ACETATE AND WHY ADD THE BIO?
Acetate is what your eyewear frames are almost definitely made from. It is a high-quality, durable and beautiful material made from cotton based plastic.
“But,” we hear you say, “acetate seems pretty friendly. Why ditch it?” The answer is simple — phthalates. We'll explain...
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PHTHALATES
In order to turn our raw organic material into acetate, a plasticiser is required. Traditionally, the plasticiser contained diethyl phthalate, a harmful petroleum derivative. But now a group of geniuses over at our supplier, Mazzucchelli 1849, have found a way to replace phthalate-based plasticisers with organic additives.
Essentially, what this means is that fossil fuels are out of that process and bio-degradables are in.
“So, they’re not going to last,” you mutter dismissively. But, thankfully on this rare occasion you're mistaken, and Mazzucchelli 1849 has even reported a number of durability-related improvements in bio-acetate, compared to normal acetate.
SUSTAINABLE QUALITY
By using bio-acetate we are combining quality and sustainability to create a more responsible product. Bio-acetate is available to everyone and we are proud to be among the first to embrace it.
AFTERWORD
We mentioned earlier that bio-acetate biodegrades in 115 days if composted and we just wanted to explain a bit more on that so you know what will happen to your eyewear when you're done with it — which we hope won't be for a very long time — and also so you know where you can get more information.
Bio-acetate has been verified by the Belgian Organic Waste System Institute to be biodegradable to ISO 14855, which is the official international certification describing the extent to which it will biodegrade under industrial composting conditions in 115 days. But it's also showing promise of having that certification upgraded to EN 13432, which means it has the potential to be even more sustainable than previously thought.