Author Description

This study aims to provide information about circular economy perspectives in the management of textile products and textile waste in the European Union (EU). The report improves the understanding of current value chains in the manufacturing and retailing of apparel products in the EU and provides a detailed picture of material flows in the EU textile sector in a global context. This includes an overview of the size of the textile processing industry in the EU in terms of turnover, employment, number and size of companies, and the EU's share of the global industry. Then, an accurate picture is drawn of the volume (tonnes) and value (Euros) of new fibres, yarns, fabrics and textile products (apparel and household textiles) produced in the EU and traded with the rest of the world. This is complemented by a detailed look at the volumes of post consumer textiles available for collection, reuse and recycling in EU countries, based on available data. This mapping serves as a preview of the upcoming challenges associated with the increased collection and processing of post-consumer textiles, foreseen as a result of mandatory obligations for the separate collection of textile waste in 2025. Furthermore, it identifies needs for planning the new fibre-to-fibre recycling capacity. This study also provides information on current industrial practice in the EU for the collection, sorting and preparation of post-consumer textiles for reuse and recycling. Both currently installed and emerging technologies for the recycling of textile fabrics and apparel are mapped in order to provide a snapshot of the state of the art of available technologies that are expected to cope with the increased amount of textile waste towards 2025. The study details existing capacities for the collection and sorting of old textiles in Europe, and describes recycling technologies that are at a relatively high technological maturity level in order to estimate future sorting and recycling capacities. In orde