SWOT Analysis of Textile Waste Recycling

Strengths

Closed – loop mechanical recycling is technically capable of treating almost any fibre composition, but the market demand for and acceptance of blended fibres is a crucial variable in determining the volume potential of mechanical recycling.
Chemical recycling targets various fibre types, including cotton, MMCF, polyester, and synthetic fibres.
The variety of fibre uses across different industries enhances the diversity and resilience of the fibre market.
The top textile sorters handle a significant amount of collected textiles, showcasing their efficiency and market dominance.
Emerging technologies like near-infrared scanning systems (NIRS) offer promising solutions to improve sorting accuracy and efficiency.
Established supply chain and retail systems are optimised for linear operations, facilitating rapid turnover of new fashion collections. This tendency can create a self-reinforcing dynamic, solidifying market dominance.
The textile industry Within the EU focuses on technical textiles and premium apparel, offering more significant profit potential than other textile categories like clothing and home textiles.
The European textile industry is at the forefront of developing sustainable products and re-using different materials, such as jeans and plastic bottles, leading the way in circular textile practices.
New ways of designing, producing, and choosing products that align with circular economy principles are being developed and implemented.

Weaknesses

The textile recycling value chain cannot function on a small scale. Critical scale across the value chain is required to provide sufficient feedstock^[1] to the necessary fibre-to-fibre recycling technologies and allow those recycling technologies to operate at scale. Therefore, the industry must set bold scaling targets and meet them.
In EU-27 and Switzerland, as much as 7 million to 7.5 million tons of gross textile waste—a bit more than 15 kilograms per person—is generated yearly^[2]. By 2030, this annual gross textile waste figure could rise to 8.5 million to 9 million tons, corresponding to just below 20 kilograms per person.
The global fashion industry is estimated to emit 3 to 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.41 If the industry continues implementing decarbonization initiatives at the current pace, emissions in 2030 will remain the same as they are today—nearly double the maximum required to stay on the UN Paris Agreement’s 1.5 pathway by 2050.
The global textile industry uses approximately 93 billion cubic metres of water per annum, which is enough to meet the annual consumption needs of five million people^[3]. For example, around 3,800 litres of water are required to produce one pair of jeans, and dyeing a single kilogram of textiles uses up to 150 litres of water.
The clothing and textile industry uses 1,900 chemicals, of which 165 are classified as hazardous by the European Union. In addition, global textile production is estimated to be responsible for around 20 per cent of global clean water pollution due to the dyeing and finishing of products^[4].
The increasing usage of synthetic fibres in clothing and home-textile products results in the release of microplastics into the environment during the product’s lifetime (for example, through machine washing). The long-duration plastic (PET) used to make synthetic fibres—like polyester—takes several hundred years to break down. The complete effects of this are not yet apparent. However, it may have adverse effects on nature. Microplastic pollution is estimated to be approximately 900 fibres shed per square metre of fabric.
Across the EU countries, there is a need to review national/ local legislation on “waste” management or shipment to understand what barriers to circularity shall be removed and how to harmonise legislation.
Collecting and sorting discarded textiles is complex and time-consuming but can be improved through partnerships, logistics and new technology.
The cost of using recycled materials remains higher than that of virgin materials. It hinders widespread adoption in the market. Increased demand from brands/retailers and public authorities encourages investment in available solutions and new research.
A bottleneck is a lack of standardised recycled materials and quality and the absence of end-of-waste criteria. We require agreed European/global standards. Private initiatives like GRS are utilised and seem adequate.

Opportunities

Several of the main challenges ahead are best solved in a highly collaborative manner. Business leaders across the value chain, investors, and leaders of public institutions would need to unite in an unprecedented way to engage in a highly operational joint effort to overcome the barriers to scale.
Several parts of the value chain must be built from scratch, requiring significant capital expenditure. Private investors would lead this journey by taking the initiative to finance building the value chain.
Leaders of public sector institutions would have to help drive textile recycling. Measures include driving up collection rates, limiting the export of unsorted textile waste, engaging in demand stimulation, creating harmonised frameworks for increased circularity, and other initiatives.
Thermo-mechanical recycling as the technology evolves, the requirements for high purity may be reduced, paving the way for broader application of thermo-mechanical recycling.
High (virgin-like) quality regenerated fibres have a high revenue potential as they can be used directly in garment production, creating a lucrative market for high-quality recycled fibres.
Business partnerships between fashion brands/authorities and makers (from fibres to finished products) are essential to educate and pilot projects. Collaboration among EU authorities, NGOs, industry, farmers, retailers, waste managers, and machine manufacturers is vital to leverage each other’s strengths and develop the Circular Economy Action Plan. Industry stakeholders must join discussions and contribute their manufacturing expertise.
Green public procurement and short supply chains, such as personal protective equipment (PPE) and workwear, offer relatively more accessible circular opportunities. Public procurement’s interest in circularity for textiles is encouraging and should lead to innovation and technical discussions. National, regional and local suppliers can play a vital role in incentivising the transition to circularity through their choices, signalling in markets and rewarding efforts. Public-private funding is needed to trigger i) the creation of reverse logistic infrastructure for consumers and companies, ii) research and innovation and iii) “Materials pools” storing recycled materials. We need bold investments and support for marketing new ecological solutions to make innovations commercially profitable. It is also paramount in the circular economy that the solutions are told about and that the marketing of innovations to consumers is invested in.

Threats

Thermo-mechanical recycling technology has been chiefly proven for non-textile waste (with a more predictable and stable input), thus causing some uncertainties on the forward-looking potential.
Uncertainty regarding the demand for recycled mixed fibres can limit the growth potential of mechanical recycling.
Technical constraints, such as the requirement for a minimum purity of 65% in closed-loop mechanical recycling, can restrict the flexibility of the technology.
High purity requirements can limit chemical recycling technologies’ flexibility and economic viability.
The demand for specialised treatment of fibre waste may pose a challenge to the environment, as some recycling processes may be energy-intensive or generate environmental waste.
Although, according to the analysis, the textile recycling industry could become self—standing and profitable once it has matured and scaled, transition funding will be needed soon.
Inefficient sorting practices can lead to adverse environmental impacts, including excessive waste generation and landfilling, threatening local ecosystems.
Traditional mechanical recycling often reduces fibre length, leading to output quality below that of virgin fibres, which could impact market acceptance.
The legacy of chemical substances in recycled materials appears not to be a problem in chemical recycling if it can be controlled by testing, traceability in the supply chain, or other ways. However, better market surveillance will be necessary to ensure REACH compliance of products introduced to the EU market. Products made from recycled materials should fulfil the exact requirements of products made from virgin materials.
Heightened public awareness regarding microplastic pollution may decrease consumer acceptance of synthetic fibres like polyester, potentially prompting stricter regulatory measures.
The textile value chain is highly fragmented and globalised, posing challenges for the implementation of sustainable and circular practices, as well as for the improvement of social justice and workers’ rights.
The current gaps in information can lead to inefficiencies and mismanagement of pre-consumer textile waste, negatively impacting sustainability efforts.

^[1] Textile waste available to recycling.

^[2] Eurostat Prodcom database; Intecus, Germany report, 2020; ISPRA, 2021; ISPRA, 2022; Modare, Spain report, 2021; Nordic Council for Ministers Baltic countries report, 2020; Refashion, France report, 2020; Rebel, Netherlands report, 2021; Umweltbundesamt, Austria report, 2022 .

^[3] A new textiles economy: Redesigning fashion’s future, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017

^[4] Environmental impact of the textile and clothing industry, European Parliamentary Research Service, European Parliament, January 2019.

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