Fresh Eurostat data released ahead of COP 31 reveals. while the European Union generated 2.3 million tons of textile waste in 2024, 37 per cent - roughly 900,000 tons - went untreated. Although 78 per cent of the 1.4 million tons processed underwent recycling, sharp regional disparities persist across member states. Italy, France, and Germany generated nearly 1 million tons combined, with Italy and France recycling 98 per cent of their treated volumes, whereas Estonia and Latvia recorded recycling rates of 5 per cent and zero per cent, respectively.

Scaling fiber-to-fiber infrastructure

For upstream yarn spinners, nonwoven manufacturers, and mechanical recyclers, this untreated post-consumer surplus represents an underutilized raw material stream. With mandatory EU Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes set to become operational across member states by 2028, mills must secure traceable secondary feedstock. In Prato, Italy - which led the bloc by treating 280,680 tonnes of textile waste - integrated wool and cotton recyclers already convert sorted post-consumer garments into regenerated yarns for global apparel supply chains.

Consistent, automated optical sorting is essential to turn municipal textile collections into commercial-grade fiber, notes Marco Rossi, Industrial Circularity Consultant, Lombardy. However, complex poly-cotton blends and high sorting costs continue to constrain chemical recycling margins.

European Union statistical authority

Headquartered in Luxembourg, Eurostat is the statistical office of the European Union, compiling harmonized economic, industrial, and environmental datasets across 27 member states. Operating with an annual institutional budget funded through the EU framework, it supports regulatory compliance and market forecasting for European manufacturing sectors, building on roots dating back to 1953.