Textiles recycling

The textiles sector is one of the largest industries in the world, due to the massive scale of the fashion industry.

This global textiles market is already worth over EUR 150 billion. Meanwhile, the textiles recycling industry hit EUR 6.4 billion in 2022. It will likely grow to reach EUR 9.2 billion by 2027.

Around 30% of used clothing is recycled in Europe, though results vary greatly per country. The US is lagging behind, recycling around 15% of post-consumer clothing.

The largest markets for clothing and shoewear are;

• China
• USA
• UK
• Germany
• Japan

What kind of material do recyclers treat?

There are currently 17 recyclers in Europe dedicated to processing textiles. They have a capacity of around 1.3 million tonnes of material per year. The bulk will be treated via mechanical recycling, with 250 000 tonnes to be treated through chemical recycling.

Recyclers treat a wide range of textile products. Besides consumer clothing, this covers accessories like bags and shawls, linnen, rags, insulation materials, carpet, medical textiles, and uniforms.

Most material reaches the recycling facility in relatively good condition. However, recyclers point out that fast fashion has decreased the quality of input significantly; it contains more plastics and is designed to have a shorter lifecycle. Furthermore, the blended materials make mechanical recycling a lot more difficult.

Where does the material go?

Collecting all unwanted clothing and recycling them is an established business in many countries. Alternatively, the used clothing may be donated to charity or thrift shops.

It’s also common for developed countries to export (around 40%) textile scrap to nations in Asia and Africa. Top importing countries are India, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia as well as Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria.