What Is SeaQual Fabric? The Ocean Plastic Yarn Changing Swimwear

What Is SeaQual Fabric? The Ocean Plastic Yarn Changing Swimwear

Here's a number that's hard to sit with: an estimated 8 million tonnes of plastic enter the world's oceans every year. The Mediterranean — our backyard, the sea we swim in, sail on, and built a brand beside — is one of the most affected bodies of water on the planet. For every square kilometre of Mediterranean surface, there are roughly 1,455 pieces of plastic floating just below the waterline.

We started Syd & Rex in Ibiza because we love the water. And when you love something, you don't ignore what's happening to it. That's why every product we make uses SeaQual fabric — a premium yarn made from upcycled marine plastic. Not as a marketing angle. As a principle.

What Is SeaQual?

SeaQual is an initiative, not just a material. It works with fishing communities across the Mediterranean and beyond — the people who are already out on the water every day — to recover marine litter from the ocean floor. Trawlers, which normally bring in fish, also bring in plastic. Bottles, bags, packaging, ghost nets. The stuff that sinks and stays.

The SeaQual Initiative coordinates the collection, sorting, and processing of this recovered waste. The plastic is cleaned, shredded, and transformed into high-quality polyester yarn — SeaQual yarn. That yarn is then woven into fabric that feels, performs, and looks like any premium textile. Because it is one.

The key difference is where it comes from. Not a petrochemical plant. The ocean.

From Ocean Waste to Premium Yarn — The Process

The journey from sea floor to swim trunk is more involved than most people realise. Here's how it works:

Recovery. Fishing vessels across the Mediterranean collect marine litter during their regular operations. This isn't a separate expedition — it's integrated into their daily work. The plastic comes up with the catch, and instead of throwing it back (which was the norm for decades), it's separated and stored on board.

Sorting. Back on shore, the recovered material is sorted by type. PET plastic — the kind used in bottles and food packaging — is separated from other waste. This is the raw material for SeaQual yarn.

Processing. The sorted PET is cleaned, dried, and mechanically recycled into small pellets. These pellets are then extruded into fine polyester fibres — the same process used to make conventional polyester, but with ocean-recovered plastic as the feedstock.

Weaving. The SeaQual fibres are spun into yarn and woven into fabric. The result is a textile that's quick-drying, UV-resistant, salt-water friendly, and soft against the skin. It's engineered for the water, made from the water.

How It Feels — Debunking the "Recycled = Rough" Myth

Let's address this directly, because it's the question everyone asks: does recycled fabric feel recycled?

No. Not even close.

SeaQual fabric has the same hand-feel as any premium polyester blend. It's smooth, lightweight, and drapes properly. It doesn't pill, it doesn't scratch, and it doesn't feel like you're wearing a statement. It feels like you're wearing well-made swim trunks — because you are.

The quick-dry properties are genuine. After a swim, SeaQual fabric sheds water faster than conventional cotton blends, which means you're not sitting in a wet patch at the beach bar. The UV protection is built into the fibre, not sprayed on, so it doesn't wash out over time. And the colour retention is excellent — our prints look as sharp after thirty washes as they did on day one.

SeaQual vs Other Sustainable Fabrics

SeaQual isn't the only sustainable textile on the market, and we think that's a good thing. The more brands that move away from virgin polyester, the better. But there are meaningful differences worth understanding.

ECONYL is a regenerated nylon made primarily from ghost fishing nets and industrial waste. It's excellent for compression garments and swimwear that needs stretch. The trade-off is that nylon production is more energy-intensive than polyester recycling.

Repreve uses post-consumer plastic bottles — the ones you put in your recycling bin. It's a solid initiative with massive scale. The difference with SeaQual is the source: Repreve diverts plastic from landfill, while SeaQual recovers plastic that's already in the ocean.

Organic cotton reduces pesticide use and water consumption compared to conventional cotton, but it's not ideal for swimwear. It absorbs water, dries slowly, and doesn't offer the same performance characteristics as synthetic alternatives.

We chose SeaQual because it directly addresses the problem we see from our doorstep. The Mediterranean. The plastic. The fishing communities who live and work on the water. It felt right — and it performs right.

Why We Built the Brand Around It

When we redesigned the Syd & Rex product line, sustainability wasn't a checkbox. It was the starting point. We asked ourselves: if we're going to make swim trunks for people who love the water, what's the most honest fabric we can use?

SeaQual was the answer. Every pair of Syd & Rex swim trunks, every boys' pair, uses SeaQual fabric. Not a capsule collection. Not a limited edition. The whole range. Because if you believe in something, you don't do it halfway.

Our custom cord tips are made from recycled materials. Our packaging is minimal and recyclable. Our silicone patches replace embroidered badges that can't be recycled. Every detail has been considered — not to win awards, but because it's the right thing to do when you're building a brand beside the sea.

The Numbers

We're cautious about throwing around statistics, because greenwashing is real and numbers without context are meaningless. But here's what we can say with confidence:

The SeaQual Initiative has facilitated the recovery of over 900 tonnes of marine litter from the ocean since its founding. That's not a projection or a target — it's verified, recovered waste that would otherwise still be on the sea floor.

Each pair of Syd & Rex swim trunks uses approximately 10 recycled PET bottles worth of SeaQual yarn. Multiply that across our full range, and the numbers start to matter.

But the number we care about most isn't on a spreadsheet. It's the one that changes when more brands, more consumers, and more fishing communities join the effort. The ocean doesn't need one brand to fix it. It needs all of us to stop making it worse — and start making it better, one pair of swim trunks at a time.

Learn more about our commitment to the ocean on our SeaQual & Sustainability page. Or simply shop the collection — every purchase is a step in the right direction.

Shop Men's SeaQual Swim Trunks →

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