Argentina Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029

The growing awareness and concern for environmental sustainability act as a compelling driver for the textile recycling market in Argentina. In terms of environmental degradation, the textile manufacturing industry is one of the most participating industries including the impacts range from excessive consumption of water to large carbon emissions. The conventional method of textile manufacturing has inherently high usage of water, energy, and raw materials, resulting in huge generation of wastes. Therefore, growing public awareness of climate change and resource depletion, coupled with growing demand for alternatives, acts as a growth-inducing factor. In this regard, textile recycling presents one major route for alleviating many environmental problems mainly by drastically reducing the volume that normally ends up in landfills, which are reaching capacity in many areas. It reduces the need for virgin resources and, hence, lowers the related environmental impact from extraction and transportation of raw materials. Another key driving force behind this Argentina market is the role that the governmental bodies play in shaping up and guiding the textile recycling market in Argentina. Governments are framing policies and legislation aimed at reducing the wastes and augmenting the use of recycled materials. Landfill use is being regulated more tightly, associated with increasing fees and stricter guidelines, thus making textile recycling more economically viable. Besides this, subsidies or tax incentives are being offered to companies that adopt recycling or other eco-friendly practices. Moreover, international accords and agreements on climate change, like the Paris Agreement, are also pressuring countries to adopt sustainable industrial practices. As a result, regulatory policies and incentives are prompting companies to invest in textile recycling, thereby contributing to the Argentina market growth. CETEX (Centro de Textiles de Argentina) is an organization that promotes the recycling and sustainable management of textiles, CETEX works with industry stakeholders to develop recycling programs and initiatives.

According to the research report, "Argentina Textile Recycling Market Outlook, 2029," published by Bonafide Research, the Argentina textile recycling market is anticipated to add to more than USD 10 Million by 2024–29. The textile recycling market in Argentina is significantly influenced by advancements in recycling technologies. Innovations in the development of efficient and cost-effective recycling processes have played a pivotal role in expanding the market. Cutting-edge technologies, such as advanced sorting systems, chemical recycling, and mechanical recycling, have improved the quality and yield of recycled textile materials. For example, the development of state-of-the-art machines capable of separating different types of fibers in a mixed textile waste stream enhances the quality of recycled materials, making them suitable for a wider range of applications. Chemical recycling methods, including depolymerization and dissolution techniques, have enabled the breakdown of complex textiles into raw materials that can be used to produce new fibers or other products. These technological advancements not only contribute to the environmental goals of reducing textile waste but also make recycled materials more economically viable for manufacturers. As technology continues to advance, the textile recycling market is likely to witness further growth and diversification, offering sustainable solutions to the challenges posed by the traditional linear fashion industry and its associated environmental impacts. The textile recycling sector faces considerable obstacles to the general adoption of recycling due to the complex and expensive nature of the processes involved. Even with advances in technology, it is still difficult to effectively sort and separate different types of textile materials, especially when working with blends or mixed fabrics. High initial costs are associated with the need for sophisticated recycling technologies, such as chemical and mechanical procedures. For these procedures to be carried out effectively, complex infrastructure in addition to complex machinery is needed. High capital costs become a significant barrier that prevents many businesses, particularly smaller ones, from participating fully in the textile recycling market.

In Argentina, cotton represents the biggest share of the textile recycling market, having abundance and being intrinsically recyclable. The market share of cotton textiles is at a higher level because more and more consumers are giving importance to using natural fiber products and following sustainable development. Infrastructures in cotton recycling are quite well set in place, besides the biodegradability of this fiber. It can be easily converted to many other useful products, hence preferred for any recycling process. Polyester and polyester fiber remain in the growing segment mainly due to the increasing demand for synthetic textiles in fast fashion and athletic wear. Growing awareness about the environmental impacts from textile wastes is one of the key drivers urging brands to introduce recycled polyesters into their collections. Innovations in recycling technologies make it easier to recycle, and this segment is expected to grow rapidly. Although the nylon and nylon fiber segments do not currently lead or show significant growth, they are important owing to high performance textile applications. While the complexity of recycling nylon discourages the process, ongoing research into chemical recycling methods has a potential for growth in the future. Wool represents a source of unique properties in terms of biodegradability and thermal insulation that are useful to sustainable fashion initiatives. Second to both cotton and polyester in terms of being recycled material, wool recycling is still less common, but growing interest in natural fibers will perhaps raise this demand in the future.

Apparel in Argentina forms the biggest segment in the textile recycling market because the discards are huge and frequent. The fast fashion sector contributes to this generation of textile waste due to its changing clothes very frequently in order to maintain the fashion trend including people replace their clothes continuously. This plethora of discarded garments opens a lucrative source of material for recycling. The dominance of this segment is also fuelled by the rather well-developed infrastructure for gathering and processing second-hand garments, which in turn recycles them efficiently. The rapid growth seen in the home furnishing category has been fundamentally anchored by changeable consumer behavior and enhanced awareness of sustainable living. As people look for ecofriendly alternatives for home furnishing, there has been increased disposal of textiles such as curtains, upholstery, and bedding. With growing emphasis on sustainability in home furnishings and associated responsible disposal and recycling campaigns, this segment is garnering further growth. Moreover, brands have started incorporating recycled materials into new home furnishing products, hence stimulating further market growth. The automotive waste segment, while not a leading or growing segment, includes textiles used in vehicle interiors, such as upholstery and carpets. This is an enormous market due to the pressure the automobile industry faces in order to become 'greener'. The recycling of automotive textiles is still in its infancy, but with the rising environment-related regulations imposed globally, the role of recycling will eventually increase in this sector.

Among the sources, post-consumer textile waste forms both the leading and growing segment in Argentina's textile recycling market, driven by its huge volume and increasing societal shift towards sustainability. Post-consumer waste refers to the discards of textiles from consumers, mainly driven by the fast fashion industry, which generates huge amounts of clothing waste. This segment benefits from increased consumer awareness of the impact of textile waste on the environment and thus an increased participation in recycling programs and initiatives. Second hand clothing and upcycling are further supported as people become more likely to donate or recycle used textiles rather than just land-filling them. Pre-consumer wastes are those rejected during the processing phase, like scraps of fabric or faulty products produced. While this segment can contribute significantly to reducing the overall wastes, it is currently a smaller market compared with post-consumer waste. Growth opportunity in pre-consumer waste has to come from the initiatives of the textile industry in going greener and ways of waste reduction. Hence, this focus on reducing pre-consumer waste should increase manifold with the growing awareness among more and more manufacturers about the importance of recycling their excess materials.



Mechanical recycling leads in the textile recycling market in Argentina due to well-established methodologies and it being relatively cheaper. In mechanical recycling, what occurs is a physical breakdown of the textiles into smaller fibers without altering their chemical structure, hence making them very straightforward to be widely adopted. This is the case with post-consumer textile waste, especially cotton and polyester, that are so abundant in the market. The ease of mechanical recycling means that this process boasts shorter processing times and lower operational costs, which helps to explain its domination of the industry. Besides, the increasing infrastructure of the facilities for mechanical recycling in Argentina has contributed to the processing of high volumes of textile waste, thus easily sustaining the leading position. The chemical recycling segment is likely to grow at a decent rate in the near future with technological advancements and growing demand for quality products from recycling. Chemical recycling entails the decomposition of textiles to molecular level so that pure fibers elicit the reincorporation into the production of new fibers. It is hence very instrumental in the case of synthetic fibers, such as polyester and nylon, which are quite complicated to recycle mechanically. With increased awareness among people about the damages that textile waste inflicts on the environment comes a corresponding demand for recycled materials that answer to the highest quality standards. Innovations to this in chemical recycling technologies are improving in efficiency and cost-competitiveness of the process, hence rapidly growing in the Argentine market.

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.