Calling a material “sustainable” describes an intention, not a system. What decides whether an orchard byproduct becomes a desirable product is everything downstream: supplier capacity, hand feel, durability, lead time, and landed cost.
Material strategy has to enter the room early enough to shape the concept, not validate it afterward. The right question is not “is this green?” but “can this be sourced, produced, priced, and sold at the standard the brand promises?”
Treating new materials as supply-chain strategy—rather than marketing—is what turns an environmental claim into a commercially viable product decision.