Anti-counterfeit technology firm Security Matters’ (SMX) and research institute European Center of Innovative Textiles (CETI) have introduced a new sustainability tool for the non-woven and fiber industries using audit-proof traceability built directly into the material. The technology allows fibers and non-woven materials to be traced from raw input to end-of-life through permanent, verifiable data.
SMX’s technology works with an embedded chemical-based marker, which creates a tamper-proof profile that stays with the fibers throughout their lifecycle. The marker can be read with detector devices and is connected to to a secure, blockchain-enabled digital platform, which enables real-time authentication and verification at every stage.
CETI then independently validates the data and provides post-processing detection to ensure the fiber’s traceability remains intact even through industrial processing.
SMX has already deployed its traceability technology across a variety of materials in fashion and textile supply chains. The technology has even been incorporated in lambskin, ensuring the ethical treatment of animals and verifying sourcing from ESG-certified farms. “This is a cutting-edge technology because the ‘memory’ is embedded into the skin itself,” Zeren Browne, chief strategic officer and board member at SMX, told Sourcing Journal in 2024.
Traceability tools such as this have become critical for the textile industry, particularly in the wake of legislation such as the European Union’s Digital Product Passport regulation, which becomes mandatory in 2027. The digital product passport requires clothing and footwear to bear a scannable code that outlines sustainability, material makeup and repair information.
SMX and CETI said this technology allows brands to fulfill those obligations without disrupting existing production systems. The scannable code allows for verified recycled content and regulatory compliance support, along with greater supply chain transparency and reduced fraud risk. It also helps producers to improve sorting to create higher-value recycling outcomes while also facilitating faster audits and reduced administrative burdens.
SMX and CETI launched a similar partnership in September, with the latter embedding the former’s blockchain-based tracing into its advanced textile R&D and circularity programs. The molecular authenticiy technology would allow fashion brands to not only ensure traceability from a circularity standpoint, but also as a means to thwart counterfeiters through a fingerprinting system that cannot be removed.
“As a center dedicated to the future of textiles, CETI’s mission is to enable industry to innovate responsibly and competitively,” CETI managing director Frederic Silvert said at the time. “SMX’s molecular traceability platform is expected to give our partners the verifiable data they need to meet circularity goals and build consumer trust in sustainable fabrics.”
