Each EU citizen generates about 16 kg of textile waste annually, but only 4.4 kg is collected separately within the EU for reuse and recycling. The majority goes to mixed household waste, ending up in incinerators or landfills. The textile sector significantly impacts the environment, being the 3rd largest contributor to environmental pressure on water and land use in the EU, and the 5th in raw materials consumption and greenhouse gas emissions [1].

Improving circularity in the textiles sector could significantly reduce these negative impacts, by extending the lifecycle of textile products and increasing the use of textile recycled fibres into new products. However, textile recycling remains currently limited, with less than 1% of material being recycled back into new clothing (the rest being recycled into other applications, incinerated or landfilled) [2].

Additionally, the textiles collection, sorting for reuse, and recycling sector in Europe is facing an unprecedented crisis with rising sorting costs, dropping sales of second-hand clothes, and a lack of demand for recycled textile content [3]. The rise of the ultra-fast fashion sold online has further increased those challenges, with a serious impact on the environment [4].

The objectives fixed in the EU Strategy for sustainable and circular textiles must be translated into a robust European regulatory framework.

EuRIC Textiles urges EU policymakers to actively support textiles circularity by shaping an industry environment where innovation thrives, investments in circularity are rewarded, and the textile reuse and recycling industry flourishes as a pillar of sustainability.