United Kingdom(UK) Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029

The UK textile recycling market merges the concept of sustainability with the rejuvenation of old fabrics, hence opening onto a future rich in eco-friendly innovation. Driving technological innovation, it is central to the UK textile recycling market for this product. Improving sorting technology gives way to innovations such as near infrared spectroscopy, a method aiming to improve efficiency and line accuracy in textile material separation. Improvements in mechanical and chemical recycling technologies will improve the quality and yield of recycled fibers, thereby making them more competitive against virgin material supplies. New technologies developed, especially biotechnological techniques using enzymes for the breakdown of textiles, further elevate prospects for improvements in efficiency and environmental performance of textile recycling. The UK textile recycling market is placed within a broader framework of the circular economy. If integrated, it would underline certain problems of continuous reuse and re-purposing of materials for the reduction of waste generation and increasing the life cycle of products. More-radical, circle-based business models are being used by companies for instance, clothing leasing or repair services helping to reduce the amount of textiles that reach the waste stream. In this way, collaboration upstream and downstream from designers to recyclers ensures that products designed at the start of their life cycle have end-of-life recycling considerations taken into account in order to make the recycling process at the end-of-life-cycle stage easier and more effective. Besides huge environmental benefits, the UK textile recycling market has many economic and social advantages. It provides employment in the collection, sorting, processing, and selling of second-hand textiles. The sector sustains local economies with reduced reliance upon raw materials acquired through importation, while providing innovation and entrepreneurship. Most of the textile recycling programs are socially engaging, support welfare activities, and are used as a tool by most of the societies due to the fact that most of the collected textiles either get donated to impoverished people or are resold for supporting social programs. R&D is also important for the development of the UK textile recycling market. Most universities and research institutions work in the realm of private companies to invest in R&D, seeking new ways of recycling and trying to improve existing ones for the development of sustainable materials. Government grants and funding programs are also keeping an eye on these initiatives, bringing innovation and development within the sector. The efficiency in the recycling process, quality of the recycled products, hence more sustainability within the textile industry, can be brought in by R&D breakthroughs.

According to the research report "UK Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029," published by Bonafide Research, the UK Textile Recycling market was valued at more than USD 270 Million in 2023. The CSR initiatives in place contribute significantly towards promoting textile recycling within the UK. Corporates, finally realizing the concept of sustainability, have just started inducing the process of recycling in the CSR strategies being followed. This include partnerships with recyclers, consumer awareness campaigns, or even investment in improving the infrastructures for recycling. Despite the number of challenges in the UK textile recycling market, different opportunities also happen to exist. The problems are mostly connected with the contamination of textile wastes, costly operations, and the requirement of more advanced technologies in recycling. Yet, these challenges come with equal measures of opportunities for growth and innovation. In this context, technology investments, raised consumer awareness, and supportive policies are the driving forces expected. Community engagement can be viewed as one of the cornerstones of the UK textile recycling market. This includes local authorities, community groups, and non-profit-making organizations that are very instrumental in spreading awareness about the practice and provisioning of collection services at this level. The UK's government has so far set up robust policies in supporting the textile recycling market to attain sustainability and reduction of waste. These will be delivered through key initiatives, as part of the Waste and Resources Action Programme and the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan, setting ambitious targets for recycling and providing guidance on best sustainable practices. The Extended Producer Responsibility schemes put a requirement on manufacturers to consider the products at the end of life and hence encourage designing for recyclability.

The Textile Recycling Association has called on the UK Government to introduce its long-delayed Extended Producer Responsibility scheme as processing plants operated by textile collectors and sorters nationwide reached full capacity. The TRA – a recognised trade association which represents over 75% of the UK's used textile collectors and sorters – has pointed to the consequence that processing plants around the country are running almost at full capacity, jeopardising the continued collection of textiles from charity shops, recycling centres, and community textile banks. As laid out in the 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy for England, textiles represent one of the priority waste streams that have been targeted for further consideration of the 'polluter pays' principle and 'an Extended Producer Responsibility scheme'. It provided a commitment by Defra to review and consult on the feasibility of EPR and product standards for the fashion and textiles sector. In July, the Government published its policy paper on the Waste Prevention Programme, outlining policy proposals for minimizing and managing textile waste. These policy proposals, in essence, require large retailers to provide a home-store textile takeback facility; call for segregation of the textile waste from non-domestic settings to be sent for recycling; and prohibit sorted textiles from being sent to landfill or energy-from-waste.

Textile recycling is part of the United Kingdom's waste management system which since inception has focused on minimizing environmentally unfriendly landfills while promoting sustainability. Being one of the most used natural fibers in the UK, in fact, cotton leads in textile recycling. Cotton waste is further processed into a new product mainly through mechanical means of recycling. In this manner of recycling, the fiber is sorted, shredded, and spun into a new yarn. In the UK, the main contributions to textile recycling markets are still the polyester and polyester fibers. Owing to their high quality, the material allows for its multiple recycling without a significant loss in quality. Conventional recycling usually consists of the melting of the waste polyester and its further extrusion into new fibers. Other advanced methods are also being researched for increased efficiency and improved quality of PET recycle in the country. Nylons and nylon fibers still face challenges in their recycling markets. While the material is recyclable, energy use and the process are technically difficult. Mechanical recycling is widely practiced, giving fiber of poor quality. Chemical recycling has a promising scope and produces good-quality nylon from this waste. With a similar process, in the UK, it is down-cycled by sorting, cleaning, and then shredding wool fabrics or spinning them into new yarn. On the other hand, wool recycling is as common due to the low market share of this material and the complications involved in the treatment of waste wool. Other material textiles that are recycled in the UK are silk, linen, and synthetic blend; blending materials are the least quantity. As far as recycling these materials is concerned, the techniques and processes used are very extensive and depend on the compositions and end properties. Fabrics that are blended are particularly problematic since they require very sophisticated sorting and separation technologies. There are many initiatives and types of regulations that stand affirmed in support of enhancing the growth of textile recycling in the UK. In this regard, the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has played a main role in encouraging textile recycling and discouraging waste.

Apparel contributes greatly to the United Kingdom's under-textiles waste, driven mainly by fast fashion trends and high consumption. The United Kingdom is ranked with the highest per capita rate of clothing consumption in the whole of Europe, massively contributing to post-consumer textile wastes. These, in reaction, have contributed to many initiatives trying to reverse this, including clothing take-back schemes from major retailers and growth in the secondhand and vintage markets. Curtains, bedding, upholstery, etc., are another significant area of home furnishing wastes. In most cases, the products in this category have a relatively longer service life, which often makes it viable to recycle or reprocess them. Upcycling and refurbishment services in furniture and home textiles have picked up momentum in the UK and are seen as contributory to reducing waste in this category. Automotive textile waste, though much smaller in volume, is gaining importance with the quest for more sustainable practice by the automotive industry. This includes recycling seat covers, carpets, and other interior textiles from end-of-life vehicles. Significantly, the process of manufacturing contributes to pre-consumer waste with industrial textile waste. The historical strength of the UK in textile manufacturing therefore remains an important area for potential recycling efforts. Initiatives aimed at reducing and recycling cutting room wastes have gained ground recently. Institutional wastes from hospitals, big hotels, and other large institutions pose a different kind of problem in terms of hygiene and specialized handling requirements. Nevertheless, they also offer possibilities for large volumes within recycling programs. In the UK, particular attention has been paid to carpet waste, with several schemes directed at its recycling and research into new, innovative technologies of recycling. The Carpet Recycling UK organization has made an important contribution to diverting carpet waste away from landfills.



Sources say the UK textile recycling market might collapse as a perfect storm of factors has hit the post-consumer and pre-consumer textile waste management. According to the Textile Recycling Association, with over 75% of UK used textiles collectors and sorters as members, it issued warnings that it was no longer possible to collect textiles from charity shops, recycling centers, and community textile banks since sorting plants have reached full capacity. This can exacerbate the ecological problem only microplastic pollution but also junk textile waste landfills and used textiles is generated annually in the UK, affecting charities, local waste authorities, and logistics sectors. This also includes the post-consumer wastes from discarded apparel and household textiles. This system is put under much pressure by the TRA, mentioning that more than 70% of the textiles are not collected for re-use or recycling. It becomes inefficient and points to the requirement for better systems and infrastructure in managing the ever-increasing volumes of wastes, more so when the fast fashion trend will continue to flood the market with low-quality textiles that are hard to recycle. On the other hand, there are huge opportunities in pre-consumer textile waste emanated in the course of processing, comprising fabric scraps and defective items created during processing. The TRA has called for the schemes, which have already been implemented in many EU countries, for EPR by January 2025, so that it would involve manufacturers to take responsibility for the lifecycle of products and encourage good practice by taking end-of-life management into their hands. The pressure also comes from outside on the textile recycling sector in the UK. Many European countries are preparing to totally ban the export of used textiles, further squeezing options for processing and recycling. Global disruptions, such as the crisis in the Red Sea affecting shipping lines, increased operational costs for textile merchants. These are accompanied by rising taxation on their markets in Africa and Asia, which, when combined with the increased pressure to restrict waste exports, creates a challenging financial environment for too many sector businesses.

The Textile Recycling Association is now calling for an Extended Producer Responsibility scheme to mirror changes in the EU amid fears that members will not be able to collect from charity shops, recycling centers, and community textile banks. The UK's industry that reprocesses discarded clothing and household textiles is suffering from a combination of increasing costs and decreasing demand. This is contrasted against environmental pressures, which put expectations on the recycling of ever-greater volumes of waste textiles. A WRAP report shows that over 70% of textiles consumed annually in the UK either is not collected for reuse or recycling or cannot be accounted for. The report identifies two main areas where opportunities from End of Life textiles exist, end markets where textiles can fetch a higher value and end markets where demand is high for volumes of cheap textiles. The potential growth of these identified end markets, which have been investigated in this report, is estimated based on industry growth, estimated demand, and opportunities. Including UK Charities, the local waste authorities, the logistics and packaging industries. As many as one in every 25 jobs in the UK would be impacted should the industry fail. Concerns for the future of the sector are heightened by the possibility that European countries suspend textile sorting operations. Fast fashion has boosted the flow of poor-quality textiles that have been reaching the recycling stream and causing problems. The crisis in the Red Sea, which has been interrupting the shipping lines, has increased operational expenses for textile merchants many times over. Coupled with increasing taxation from both African and Asian markets and increasing pressure to restrict the export of waste, it seems that the industry is under very serious financial stress.

Considered in this report
• Historic year: 2018
• Base year: 2023
• Estimated year: 2024
• Forecast year: 2029

Aspects covered in this report
• Textile Recycling market Outlook with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Material
• Cotton
• Polyester & Polyester Fiber
• Nylon & Nylon Fiber
• Wool
• Others

By Source
• Apparel Waste
• Home Furnishing Waste
• Automotive Waste
• Others

By End-Use Industry
• Apparel
• Home Furnishings
• Industrial & Institutional
• Others

By Textile Waste
• Post-consumer
• Pre-consumer

By Process
• Mechanical
• Chemicals

The approach of the report:
This report consists of a combined approach of primary and secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list the companies that are present in it. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, annual reports of companies, and government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources, primary research was conducted by conducting telephone interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this; we have started making primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting them in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us, we can start verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience
This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations, and organizations related to the Textile Recycling industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing and presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.