Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: APDN) (Applied DNA or the “Company”), a leader in Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-based DNA manufacturing and nucleic acid-based technologies, today announced signing a mutual collaboration agreement (the “Agreement”) with Ganesha Ecosphere Ltd. (BSE: GANECOS) (Ganesha), the largest recycled polyester (rPET) fiber producer in India with over 300-plus customers, 250-plus suppliers, and 500-plus product variants. Under the terms of the Agreement, Ganesha will deploy the CertainT® platform, Applied DNA’s traceability system, to tag an initial pilot production of recycled polyester (rPET) at Ganesha’s facilities in India and conduct confirmatory samples testing at Applied DNA’s laboratories in India and the U.S. The collaboration between the two companies will provide brands and textile manufacturers with a trusted solution to support their sustainability goals for rPET and confirm raw material authenticity at all stages of the textile value chain.
The Agreement enables Ganesha to introduce and apply CertainT-verified rPET to provide assurance for the raw material with textile and apparel customers. Ganesha will also employ Applied DNA’s recently introduced SigNature® T-100 tracer system that enables rPET source material to be quantified in polyester blends by the CertainT platform. SigNature T-100 is a proprietary molecular-based tracer system used to identify, analyze, and verify rPET, polypropylene, acrylic, and potentially other man-made materials for claims of both identification and quantification of the raw material tagged and subsequently spun into yarn for various textile products.
“Traceability has now added more authenticity and credibility to the entire textile supply chain and is becoming an integral part of the recycling process. With Applied DNA and CertainT, our customers can now trust in the original tagged synthetic fiber and verify product-related sustainability claims,” stated Mr. B.P. Sultania, Joint President of Ganesha Ecosphere Ltd.
Since entering the rPET business in 1994, Ganesha has pioneered the manufacturing of rPET fiber and rPET yarn from post-consumer PET bottle scrap under the leadership and vision of Chairman Shri Shyam Sunder Sharmma. The company is the largest producer of rPET fiber, spun yarn, and dyed filament with a cumulative capacity of 118,800 metric tons per annum in India. Ganesha’s rPET products are components in the manufacture of textiles, such as T-shirts, body warmers, functional textiles such as non-woven air filter fabric, geo textiles, carpets, and car upholstery, and fillings for pillows, duvets, and toys.
“CertainT provides brands and manufacturers with a real strategic advantage that is truly sustainable, traceable and trusted. Our India and Asia-based support teams for recycled PET and other polymers facilitate CertainT’s commercial scale-up and integration into customers’ supply chain,” stated Dr. James A. Hayward, president, and CEO of Applied DNA Sciences.