#Recycling / Circular Economy

2025-04-29

Practical, market-driven End-of-Waste criteria are key to textile circularity

As the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) works on the development of harmonised End-of-Waste (EoW) criteria for textiles, EuRIC, the voice of Europe’s recycling industries, calls for an approach that is practical, market-driven, and innovation-friendly.

EoW criteria must reflect the realities of textile collection, sorting, and recycling to enable a truly circular textiles value chain. Valuable textiles – including workwear, technical items, or garments with minor defects (i.e. missing buttons, or small stains) – must not be excluded from reuse or recycling due to overly rigid definitions or current technological limitations. Trusted and trained sorting operators are best placed to determine reusability based on real market demand.

Sorters and recyclers must not be administratively burdened with disproportionate requirements. The sector needs quality assurance frameworks that are realistic and easy to implement, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Support for the JRC proposed approach that grants the EoW for recycling status afterthe recycling process, in line with the Waste Framework Directive, which defines recycling as “any recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances." While sorting for recycling is an essential step, output materials of this operation are intermediate fractions that still need to undergo recycling and should not be eligible for EoW status. As recommended by the JRC for the mechanical recycling, EoW status shall be granted at the point at which the output material is either ready to be used directly as a textile product or is ready to be used for the production of new textile products.

Recyclers cannot be held responsible for unknown chemical content in post-consumer textiles, and red tape must be avoided. An approach should be found that ensures compliance with the chemicals legislation without harming the textiles circular economy, and by considering the challenges of tracking thousands of substances in post-consumer textiles.

The EoW framework must actively support innovation. This includes enabling R&D through targeted exemptions for small volumes of textile waste, allowing the testing of new materials and recycling processes under safe conditions, without being blocked by rigid standards.

A successful EoW framework must reduce barriers - not create new ones. The future of textile recycling in Europe depends on smart rules that empower sorters & recyclers, drive investment, and unlock the full potential of circularity.

The European Recycling Conference 2025 heads to Hamburg

The European Recycling Conference (ERC) is coming to Hamburg, Germany, on 1 October 2025. This year’s edition, co-organised with EuRIC’s German members BDSV, bvse, and VDM, will explore the topic of “Building a competitive market for recycled materials”, and their critical role in delivering on the EU’s Competitiveness Compass and Clean Industrial Deal objectives.

ADVANSA launches ADVA®tex: A new step toward textile-to-textile recycling

ADVANSA has introduced ADVA®tex, a new filling fibre made entirely from recycled pre-consumer textile waste, positioning the material as a significant step forward in textile-to-textile (T2T) recycling. The fibre is designed for use in duvets, pillows, mattresses, and furniture applications and is available in three versions.

European research project addresses textile waste through integrated recycling technologies

A major European research initiative coordinated by Fraunhofer UMSICHT has been launched to develop integrated solutions for textile waste recycling. The AUTOLOOP project aims to create a comprehensive system that could process 1.24 million tonnes of textile waste annually by 2050, whilst potentially creating over 130,000 green jobs across the EU. This project aims to develop, test and integrate automated sorting, tracing, and closed-loop recycling technologies for polyester-based textiles (NRT), addressing the pressing challenge of textile waste management.

Navis TubeTex announces U.S. partnership with Icomatex

Navis TubeTex, a global leader in advanced dyeing and finishing machinery solutions, is pleased to announce a new partnership with Icomatex (www.icomatex.com), a respected European manufacturer of high-quality stenters and textile finishing equipment. Under this agreement, Navis TubeTex will exclusively represent the Icomatex stenter line in the United States.

KARL MAYER celebrates 35 years of EL pattern drive

KARL MAYER is celebrating an anniversary this year: on 30 November 1990, the first warp knitting machine with electronic guide bar control, the KS 4 EL, was delivered – another milestone for patterning. As early as 1980, the SU gearbox with the MRS42SU had initiated the transition from mechanical chains to digital data.

The region of renewable raw materials: Central German Alliance for Bioplastics

The development of sustainable plastic solutions is rapidly gaining importance in light of global environ- mental pollution, dwindling fossil resources and ambitious climate protection targets. As part of the re- gional alliance RUBIO, which brings together 18 partners from central Germany and the Berlin-Branden- burg area, the bio-based and biodegradable plastic polybutylene succinate (PBS) was comprehensively investigated, starting with the raw material, through the manufacturing process, to industrial application.

YKK receives ISPO Textrends Awards for circular innovations

YKK Corporation (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Koichi Matsushima; hereafter, YKK) is pleased to announce that the ISPO Textrends judges have selected YKK's 3D Composite Puller as the Best Product in the Accessories category. They also selected YKK’s NATULON Plus® Fiber Sourced™ zipper with Recycled PET Open Parts as a Top 5 item in the same category. The competition, held twice a year in conjunction with the ISPO trade show, recognizes the most innovative performance textiles, components, and apparel.