The Past, Present and Future of Milk Fibre, from an Autarchic Material in the 1930s to a Sustainable Fibre for the 21st Century

Isabella Campagnol ()
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Isabella Campagnol: Istituto Marangoni

A chapter in Global Fashion Conference, 2026, pp 39-51 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The paper intends to research the history of a casein-based fibre with moth-resistant qualities and Merino-like warmth, created in Italy in 1935 by Italian Antonio Ferretti: he christened the new fibre “Lanital”, a name that combined the words “lana” (wool) and “Italia” (Italy). Using as sources archival materials and 1930s and 1940s fashion magazines. Lanital will be investigated as a material used in Italian fashion from its discovery to the 1960s, when it gradually disappeared from fashion, substituted by the new, versatile, and much cheaper acrylic fibres. Today’s use of Lanital, now simply known as “milk fibre”, will be investigated as well, through examples of companies that employ this inherently sustainable material in contemporary fashion. Linking the past with the present, the paper aims therefore to delineate a comprehensive history of milk fiber and to investigate how an “old” idea can be transformed by today’s technology and made into an almost zero-waste, environmentally friendly material for the fashion of the future.

Keywords: Lanital; milk fibre; casein-based fibre; sustainable fashion; zero waste; textile history; Italian wool; Italian fashion history (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-032-02070-3_3

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-02070-3_3

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