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Incoming global Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes look likely to bring companies operating in the textiles industry into the scope, according to circularity experts Reconomy.
There are various EPR schemes for textiles already in place across many European countries and the European Union (EU) is now proposing to introduce mandatory and harmonised EPR schemes for textiles across all its Member States.
California recently postponed its textile recycling legislation until next year but the State looks set to implement the USA’s first form of EPR scheme for the industry. The UK is funding a trial of its own and the importance of the European market for many producers could necessitate alignment with the EU’s plans.
Given the direction of travel on these schemes, the starting gun has been fired for producers and manufacturers across the globe to get into the best position possible ahead of their widespread introduction. From a compliance point of view, companies should be taking steps to understand their current footprint, where they are likely to need to get to and the processes required to get there – data will be key to get a clear view of their operations and measuring improvements.
In the UK, the online textile market is booming with ONS data finding that the value of average weekly online sales at textile, clothing and footwear stores reached a record £1.71 billion in H1 2023.
