Sustainability

at Umbruma

At Umbruma, sustainability is not a trend, it’s the foundation of everything I do. From sourcing materials to designing each piece, every choice reflects a commitment to the environment, the animals, and the communities that make my work possible. This page explains the principles, practices, and intentions behind the studio’s sustainable approach.

Why it Matters

Sustainability in fashion is about more than reducing waste, it’s about responsible material use, traceable sourcing, and mindful creation. At Umbruma, every fiber I work with is biodegradable and renewable, including wool, merino, mohair, alpaca, cotton, linen and others.

Choosing natural fibers reduces the environmental impact of fashion by minimizing synthetic waste and creating garments that are built to last. These materials are functional, beautiful, and connected to the landscapes, seasons, and ecosystems that produce them. Understanding sustainability is understanding the lifecycle of what you wear, from field and flock to finished design.

Traceability & Material Origins

Traceability is central to Umbruma. I work directly with Spanish shepherds and small producers, local dyers, and selected small European producers to source fibers. For most materials, I know the flock, the shepherd, and how the animals are cared for, as well as the processes used to transform fiber into yarn. In some cases, you’ll even see the name and picture of the animal whose wool became the yarn in your garment.

When yarns are processed or dyed by other artisans, I share who worked on them, so every stage of the material’s journey is transparent. This approach allows the story of each fiber to be part of the garment, connecting you directly to its origin and the people who nurtured it.

By following the journey of fibers from their source to the studio, I aim to create pieces that reflect both care for the animals and respect for the environment, while inviting you to appreciate the story behind every fiber.

Seasonal Rhythms

Working with natural fibers means designing in harmony with nature’s cycles. Sheep are shorn seasonally, and plants like cotton or flax are harvested according to their growth cycles. The availability and color of yarns can also vary with the seasons. It will happened that i buy a yarn in a specific colour that is later discontinued.

This rhythm guides when and what I create. Pieces are designed stitch by stitch, respecting the natural characteristics of each fiber. Following seasonal cycles encourages slow, intentional design, garments made with care rather than speed, respecting the limits and strengths of the materials.

The Journey from Fleece to Yarn

Every fiber, whether animal or plant-based, has a journey before it reaches the studio,
For animal fibers the general path is :
1. Sheep & Grazing : Animals are raised responsibly, often following transhumance cycles.
2. Shearing : Fleece is collected carefully, typically once per year.
3. Sorting & Grading : Fibers are sorted by quality, length, and texture.
4. Washing (Scouring) : Cleaning removes impurities while maintaining fiber integrity.
5. Carding & Combing : Fibers are aligned to prepare for spinning.
6. Spinning : Fibers are twisted into yarn, defining thickness and strength.
7. Dyeing : Optional colouring using natural or low-impact dyes.

For vegetable fibers the general path is :
1. Planting
2. Harvest : Mechanical pickers or strippers pluck the mature, fluffy cotton bolls from the plant fields.
3. Retting or Ginning : Fiber Separation
4. Preparation / Carding : he loose cotton passes through a carding machine equipped with wire-pinned cylinders. This combs out remaining trash and aligns the fibers into a loose, rope-like strand called a sliver.
5. Spinning : he loose cotton passes through a carding machine equipped with wire-pinned cylinders. This combs out remaining trash and aligns the fibers into a loose, rope-like strand called a sliver.
6. Dyeing : Optional colouring using natural or low-impact dyes.

Fibre Production in Spain

This part of the page is dedicated to the current state of the fibre industry in Spain both for protein fibres and vegetable fibres. It will help us understand the current key statistics of the industry and the problems it is currently going through.

Spain has a long and rich history with wool and plant fibres. For centuries, wool was known as “white gold”, a driving force in rural economies and one of the first internationally traded textile fibres. Spain was historically a major supplier of fine wool, especially Merino, whose genetics later spread across Europe and became the backbone of global wool industries. From ancient flax and hemp cultivation to the introduction of cotton in Al-Andalus, vegetable fibers have been central to Spanish textile traditions. These materials have been used for everything from household textiles to clothing, often alongside wool.

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Spanish wool Industry

Overview

Today, Spain remains one of the largest wool producers in the European Union, but the modern wool sector exists within a landscape of abundance in raw material and scarcity in processing and market value. In recent agricultural reporting:

In 2024, approximately 10,902,857 sheep were sheared across Spain, producing about 20,670 tonnes of wool. This followed totals of roughly 20,745 tonnes in 2023, 21,992 tonnes in 2022 and 23,168 tonnes in 2021, showing a declining production trend over the last few years.*

In 2021 alone, over 12.1 million sheep were sheared, yielding 23,168 tonnes of wool. That year nearly half of the wool produced was classified as medium‑fine (entrefina), with substantial quantities also of fine and coarse types.*

Sheep census figures show that Spain’s sheep population has dropped over the last decade; as of late 2024, there were around 13.5 million sheep nationwide, down from historical peaks but still among the largest flocks in Europe.*

The main wool‑producing regions include Extremadura, Castilla y León, Andalucía, and Castilla‑La Mancha, which together account for the majority of national wool output.
As of the latest reports:*

Extremadura accounted for nearly 6,000+ tonnes of wool,

Castilla y León produced more than 3,700+ tonnes,

Andalucía contributed around 3,400+ tonnes,

Castilla‑La Mancha added over 2,800+ tonnes.

Despite these significant volumes of raw wool, much of it does not enter domestic textile manufacturing, and a large portion is instead sold as raw commodity fiber or exported with minimal processing, rather than being transformed into finished textiles within Spain.

*“Estadística de lana, miel y huevos para consumo humano– Año 2024”, Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación.

Structure & Processing Capacity

While Spain still produces significant amounts of raw wool each year, the industrial infrastructure that once supported full internal processing, from washing and carding to spinning, weaving, and finishing, has contracted dramatically over recent decades. What remains today is a mix of small‑scale facilities, niche specialists, and a broader textile industry where wool is a minor component.

As of 2025 there are approximately 362 textile mills registered in Spain, encompassing facilities that may include knitting, weaving, finishing, and other textile activities across different materials and specialties.

Among these, only around 93 weaving mills specialize in fabric production (including wool and other textiles), indicating how limited dedicated fiber‑to‑fabric infrastructure has become.

Many of these mills are small or medium‑sized workshops, especially compared to the industrial wool mills that existed in the past. Large, vertically integrated wool production complexes, like those seen in northern Europe historically, are now rare in Spain.
What This Means for Wool Processing

In practical terms, the wool processing pathway that once existed (where raw fleece could be cleaned, sorted, carded, spun, woven, dyed, and finished locally) is no longer the norm.

Dedicated wool scouring (washing) plants are extremely rare, with some estimates suggesting that historically over 95% of such facilities have closed, leaving only a few active in the entire country.

Spinning capacity still exists, but it tends to be focused on broader textile markets, and few mills specialize solely in wool fibers. Many small producers and designers rely on smaller artisan spinners or niche facilities rather than large industrial operations.

Exporting raw fiber remains common because domestic infrastructure is limited, much of the wool is sent abroad (often to northern Europe, Asia, or North Africa) for washing and processing before returning in yarn or finished form.

Regional Concentration & Shepherding Realities

Spanish wool production is regionally concentrated. Areas such as Extremadura, Castilla y León, Andalusia, and Castile‑La Mancha host many of the flocks that supply raw wool. Despite this, many shepherds today face economic challenges:

Profitability from wool is low, often forcing shepherds to depend on meat, dairy, or other agricultural outputs rather than wool alone.

Many flocks are smaller or aging, reflecting rural demographic shifts that see younger generations moving away from traditional herding.

Transhumance practices, once the backbone of mountain pasture cycles, have declined significantly though some remain active and are increasingly recognized for their ecological role. While transhumance has been inscribed as Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO, its practice continues to face economic and logistical pressures in modern agriculture.

What Happens to Unused Wool

One of the most critical issues confronting the textile ecosystem in Spain is what happens to wool that is not commercially viable. Reports and industry observations suggest that a large percentage of wool produced each year remains unsold, untreated, or even stockpiled, sometimes leading to waste or burn‑off in agricultural settings.

This situation underscores the absence of fully developed processing and manufacturing pathways within Spain, and highlights why many shepherds and small producers struggle to find buyers or financial incentive for quality wool.

Industry Actors & Small‑Scale Revivals

In contrast to large‑scale industrial decline, small initiatives and artisan collaborations are working to revalue Spanish wool and rebuild localized textile ecosystems. Examples include small mills that still process wool in regional facilities and grassroots groups focused on “quality wool revalorization.” These efforts aim to:

– Promote local wool as a high‑value specialist material
– Maintain artisanal knowledge and processing skills
– Reconnect fiber production with local craft and design markets

Such initiatives reflect a growing interest in heritage and sustainable textiles, especially where natural fibers are prized for their ecological performance and cultural significance.

Spanish Vegetable Fibers Industry

Cotton

Cotton is the main commercially grown vegetable fiber in Spain, concentrated mainly in Andalusia and other southern regions due to suitable climates and irrigation infrastructure. Spain accounts for roughly 20 % of the European Union’s cotton area and production, making it one of the continent’s key cotton producers.

According to Spanish agricultural statistics (MAPA – Ministerio de Agricultura,MAPA’s Anuario de Estadística Agraria 2024 ):

Spain consistently accounts for about 20 % of the EU’s cotton area and cotton production, making it one of the most important cotton‑growing countries in the Union.

In the 2024 agricultural year, cotton covered approximately 51,076 hectares in cultivated area.

That year’s production of raw (bruto) cotton totalled 112,349 tonnes, a significant figure considering Spain’s smaller global role compared to major cotton producers like the U.S., China, and India. However only 53,247 tonnes were destined for fibre production.

Despite being an important crop, most of Spain’s cotton does not complete the full yarn‑to‑fabric processing domestically. Technical spinning and further textile finishing generally take place outside the country, even though the raw cotton is harvested locally.

Linen

Linen (made from flax) has a long historical footprint in Spain but exists today on a very modest scale in contemporary agriculture. According to the latest official crop statistics:

In the national agricultural statistics (MAPA’s Anuario de Estadística Agraria) 2024 , linen (flax) fiber cultivation was around 20 hectares reported for textile flax, yielding just 72 tonnes.

These numbers show that formal linen cultivation exists in Spain today only as a very small crop, often tied to specialist agricultural projects rather than large‑scale commercial production. However, historical data shows that linen was once much more widespread, in decades past, production reached tens of thousands of hectares before largely disappearing in the late 20th century.

Flax

Industrial hemp, which can produce both hurd (core) and bast (fiber), has seen a resurgence as legal cultivation expands in parts of Spain. Hemp fiber is valued for its strength and durability and is often grown for a mix of uses, including textiles, biocomposites, and building materials.

According to Spanish agricultural statistics (MAPA – Ministerio de Agricultura): Hemp fiber cultivation was noted at 32 hectares, producing 147 tonnes of fiber for textile and industrial use In 2024.