Though the amount of textiles being discarded increases annually, a portion of these waste products are reused and recycled. However, textile recyclers are still grappling with the outstanding challenge of material composition identification and separation. Contemporary textile sorting systems are predominantly reliant on manual processes and lack capabilities for distinguishing material content, with items often being mis-labelled or devoid of labels entirely. Solutions to this problem need to be developed at a scale which can match that of the recycling industry and the amount of textile waste being produced by society. Additionally, the sorting industry generates income primarily through the sale of reusable textiles, and so, a circular textiles system requires an end-market for those textiles which are non-reusable.

The Sorting for Circularity Project is developing research to build the infrastructure and digital matching system needed to support the activities of sorters and recyclers. It endeavors to map the current and future capabilities of textile recyclers in Europe and conduct a comprehensive textile waste analysis using Near Infrared (NIR) technology to provide a representative snapshot of textile waste composition generated in the region. The creation and implementation of the methodology is led by Circle Economy, with support from French accredited Extended Producer Responsibility eco-organization, Refashion, to assess textile waste composition. Refashion is aligning the project with their own study in France to ensure the methodologies and findings can be standardized, compared, and implemented at scale. The research will culminate in the creation of an open digital platform capable of matching textile waste from sorters with recyclers.

Fashion for Good's Sorting for Circularity Project aims to create and bolster connections between textile sorters and recyclers in order to galvanize a recycling market for discarded textiles that can generate new revenue streams for sorters. Its regional research will illuminate imperative gaps between the sorting and recycling industries, and the innovation, investment and policy changes needed to accelerate circular textile chains. The project's resulting open-source platform will also foster greater transparency, unity, and collaboration between these industries in the transition toward a greater circular economy.

The Sorting for Circularity Project has united brands and industry leaders across Europe, including its current partners, Circle Economy, Refashion, Laudes Foundation, Adidas, BESTSELLER, Zalando, and Inditex. It has also brought together the largest industrial textile sorters in the North-West European region, including the Boer Group, I:CO, JMP Wilcox, and TEXAID.

Photo credit: Alejo Reinoso