A new initiative aims to remove potassium permanganate, also known as PP spray, from denim manufacturing.
This summer B2B marketing agency Ruess International, in partnership with chemical supplier CHT Germany, launched PP-free Denim Mission, a call to action to develop and adopt “scalable PP-free production pathways.” Ruess coordinates the initiative and its communications activities and CHT contributes technical expertise and practical experience in denim finishing.
“Our broader aim is to help move the conversation from awareness towards practical implementation,” said Dr. Eva Strohschneider, Ruess senior content strategist.
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Like other multi-stakeholder initiatives designed to scale sustainable practices, PP-free Denim Mission aims to facilitate informed industry dialogue, share technical knowledge and support the exchange of practical approaches to lower-impact denim-finishing systems.
“Potassium permanganate has been widely used in denim finishing for decades, despite concerns about worker exposure and wastewater impacts. At the same time, viable alternatives are increasingly available, yet their broader industrial adoption remains challenging,” said Strohschneider. “With PP’s inclusion in the ZDHC Chemical Watchlist in 2026, the issue is receiving greater attention. We believe the time has come to move the discussion beyond why the industry should reduce its reliance on PP and focus on how this transition can be achieved under real production conditions.”
To start, PP-free Denim Mission published a guide to the denim ecosystem, exploring denim manufacturing and finishing processes, and defining the components of sustainable denim production.
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