Globally, textile production almost doubled from 2000 to 2015, and around 5.8 million tons of textiles are thrown away annually in the EU. That corresponds to 11kg per person.

This textile overconsumption has a large impact. It is the 4th most polluting industry in terms of GHG emissions and it has the 3rd largest impact on water and land use in the EU.

However, this system has large economic significance since it employs 1.5 million people and generated around 162 billion EUR in turnover in 2019. This sector needs to operate a transition to become more sustainable and circular and limit its impact on the environment.

To ensure the transition, the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles will introduce specific ecodesign requirements to increase textile products' durability. It will also promote circular business models and design for recyclability.

The Commission plans to ban the destruction of unsold textiles. They will use prevention and reduction measures to limit the release of microplastics into the environment. The creation of a digital product passport for textiles will push for the inclusion of mandatory information regarding the sustainability and circularity of a product.

The EU will also harmonise the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) rules on textiles and encourage people to consume more circular textiles. To enable this transition, it will make investments in research and skills development.

The Commission's 2030 Vision for Textiles is that all textile products placed on the EU market are durable, repairable and recyclable, to a great extent made of recycled fibres, free of hazardous substances, produced in respect of social rights and the environment.

Secondly, ”fast fashion is out of fashion", and consumers benefit longer from high quality affordable textiles.

Thirdly, profitable re-use and repair services are widely available. And last but not least, the textiles sector is competitive, resilient and innovative with producers taking responsibility for their products along the value chain with sufficient capacities for recycling and minimal incineration and landfilling.

Photo by Guillaume Périgois on Unsplash