{"id":1299,"date":"2025-04-22T13:30:28","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T20:30:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thegoodtrade.com\/textile-recycling-process\/"},"modified":"2025-05-05T10:42:39","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T17:42:39","slug":"textile-recycling-process","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thegoodtrade.com\/features\/textile-recycling-process\/","title":{"rendered":"How Does Textile Recycling Work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-are-my-donated-clothes-really-being-recycled\">Are my donated clothes really being recycled?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Each year, new and more horrifying statistics come out about how much textile waste is being produced. This includes vehicle upholstery, home goods, and of course, clothing. With <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thegoodtrade.com\/features\/what-is-fast-fashion\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fast fashion<\/a> continuing to rear its ugly head, secondhand shops are overwhelmed and clothing donated with the best intentions often ends up in landfills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling\/textiles-material-specific-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Environmental Protection Agency<\/a>, 16.9 million tons of textiles were generated in 2017, with only 13.6 percent estimated to have been recycled. Landfills receive more than 10 million tons of textile waste each year because there isn\u2019t enough demand for the endless supply of donated clothing. This results in mountains of used items being dumped around the world, as well as used pieces being sold by vendors, hindering the businesses of local designers and makers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cLandfills receive more than 10 million tons of textile waste each year because there isn\u2019t enough demand for the endless supply of donated clothing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>To put it simply, we have a textile waste problem and fashion will never be a sustainable industry if we don\u2019t fix it. Could textile recycling be the solution we\u2019re searching for?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-textile-collection-post-vs-pre-consumer-textile-recycling\"><strong>Textile collection: Post- vs. pre-consumer textile recycling\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The first step in any textile recycling process is collection. Materials are sorted and recycled differently depending on if they are post- or pre-consumer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Post-consumer textiles are those donated by individuals (i.e., secondhand clothing). Most post-consumer clothing is collected through public donation bins, clothing drives, or independent company programs. These bins from companies like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.greentreetextiles.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Green Tree Recycling<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usagain.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">USAgain<\/a>, as well as from various Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.smartasn.org\/resources\/frequently-asked-questions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SMART<\/a>) members, are strategically placed in populated areas for public donations. Other businesses use donation boxes or mail-in services so that individual consumers can ship their used clothing to processing facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But companies like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.retoldrecycling.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Retold Recycling<\/a> work with recycling partners to ensure donated items never go to landfills. \u201c[We work with] an established partner in the industry [with] generations of experience\u2026,\u201d says Amelia Trumble, co-founder of the newly launched recycling service. \u201cContractually, we&#8217;ve asked them to make sure that nothing ever goes from our bags to landfill.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And a handful of <a href=\"https:\/\/click.linksynergy.com\/deeplink?id=DkqcY%2Fd68c0&amp;mid=42820&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eileenfisher.com%2F\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">other brands<\/a> also use take-back programs to upcycle, recycle, or resell customers\u2019 garments, like <a href=\"https:\/\/click.linksynergy.com\/deeplink?id=DkqcY%2Fd68c0&amp;mid=42820&amp;murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eileenfisher.com%2F\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Eileen Fisher<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thenorthface.com\/about-us\/responsibility\/product\/clothes-the-loop.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\">The North Face<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/patagonia.pxf.io\/c\/274622\/1948563\/23649?subId1=cl-web--&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.patagonia.com%2Fhome%2F\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener sponsored nofollow\">Patagonia<\/a>. Each of these efforts is exciting, but minimal in comparison to the larger issue at hand\u2014which includes campaigns that are claiming to tackle post-consumer textile recycling at scale when, in actuality, the brands are greenwashing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cCampaigns&#8230;claim to tackle post-consumer textile recycling at scale when, in actuality, the brands are greenwashing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/90385370\/hm-zara-and-other-fashion-brands-are-tricking-consumers-with-vague-sustainability-claims\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">H&amp;M\u2019s widespread garment collection<\/a>, for example, doesn\u2019t address the company\u2019s overproduction or provide a plan for reusing the overwhelming amounts of textiles they receive during collection.&nbsp;Moreover, many recycling programs and store take-backs have quality guidelines for donations, some excluding items with stains or rips. And almost all textile recycling programs refuse wet garments because of inevitable mildew buildup. If a piece of clothing gets wet in the shipping or sorting process, it\u2019s then headed for the landfill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some companies have decided to avoid sifting through stained t-shirts altogether and instead focus on pre-consumer textile recycling. Pre-consumer collection includes anything from clothing manufacturers\u2019 fabric scraps to post-industrial scrap textiles from entities like hotels and healthcare facilities. Companies such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ico-spirit.com\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">I:CO<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/renewalworkshop.com\/pages\/our-story\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Renewal Workshop<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.evrnu.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Evrnu<\/a>\u00ae partner with brands to create circular solutions for unsold stock and unused textiles.&nbsp;For The Renewal Workshop, this means taking in overstock from brand partners and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thegoodtrade.com\/features\/how-upcycling-helps-us-tell-new-stories\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">upcycling<\/a> or repairing pieces for their online shop, while Evrnu\u00ae focuses on developing technologies to create new fiber from old garments, and I:CO operates somewhere in between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sorting-textiles-by-fiber-natural-vs-synthetic-fiber\"><strong>Sorting Textiles By Fiber: Natural vs. Synthetic Fiber<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>After collection and sorting, textiles are generally \u201cgraded\u201d to determine what can be resold and what must be recycled. The garments that can\u2019t be resold are sorted by color and material. In the case of natural materials, the garment is then shredded into fibers via machine; these fibers are then cleaned and re-aligned in a \u2018carding process\u2019 before being re-spun into yarn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Depending on its intended purpose, different types of yarns are blended to create a stronger fiber for reuse. Still, most natural fiber isn\u2019t spun into yarn again but instead turned into stuffing for furniture, insulation for buildings, or cleaning rags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cTechnically all fabrics can be recycled, so why are only .1 percent of textiles turned into new clothing?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Technically all fabrics can be recycled, so why are <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/talkgreentome\/ep-6-composites-get-it-together\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">only .1 percent of textiles turned into new clothing<\/a>? Aside from consumer error, natural fibers are unfortunately much harder to recycle than synthetic ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Ernel Simpson, Vice President of Research and Development at <a href=\"https:\/\/ownterracycle.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TerraCycle<\/a>, explains how most recycling is done using thermomechanical processing. The heat burns up most natural fibers but, \u201con the other hand, if you have polyester, you can shred the polyester fabric or garment and run it through an extruder because it&#8217;s a plastic and it will melt like any other plastic,\u201d says Simpson. The extruder\u2014which is the machine that carries out the thermomechanical processing\u2014can then \u201ccreate new granules from the broken down synthetic material.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is a much more straightforward process than the one that happens with natural fibers.&nbsp;This isn\u2019t to say that natural fibers are bad (far from it), but we simply don\u2019t have the systems in place to widely recycle them at the moment. Even more difficult? Combined fibers\u2014though solvents and solutions can extract polyester or cotton from a blended fabric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-future-of-textile-recycling\"><strong>The future of textile recycling\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Textile recycling, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thegoodtrade.com\/features\/circular-fashion-definition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">circularity<\/a>, and clothing reuse\u2014there\u2019s a lot to discuss. But we have very little information on how these ideas will scale. Organizations like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org\/assets\/downloads\/publications\/A-New-Textiles-Economy_Full-Report_Updated_1-12-17.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ellen MacArthur Foundation<\/a> have big ideas and plans for creating a new textiles economy based on the principles of a circular economy, but we\u2019ve yet to see real impact in the fashion industry. There seems to be a disconnect between accessible donation and the rate of recycling into new, wearable items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cThere seems to be a disconnect between accessible donation and the rate of recycling into new, wearable items.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Civic or science-minded organizations and companies are hell-bent on making it easy for clothing to be collected, while the percentage of clothing turned into new items remains slim. A lot of clothing <em>is<\/em> diverted from landfills for the time being, but what will it take to create this widespread, sustainable change? We\u2019ll have to see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the meantime, the best thing we can do for the planet is to be more mindful about textile donations, and not so quick to assume our donations will be recycled. Instead, we can find ways to reuse and repurpose garments and textiles in our home as a way to ensure they stay out of landfills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cFind ways to reuse and repurpose garments and textiles&#8230;as a way to assure they stay out of landfills.&nbsp;\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>How are you repurposing your old fabrics? Share in the comments below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.audstant.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Audrey Stanton<\/strong><\/a><em>&nbsp;was born and raised in the Bay Area and is currently based in Los Angeles. She works as a freelance writer and content creator with a focus in sustainable fashion. Audrey is deeply passionate about conscious living and hopes to continue to spread awareness of ethical consumption.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are our donated clothes really being recycled? How can we effectively reuse and repurpose our old fabrics? Our editor explores the wild world of textile recycling.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":114,"featured_media":1300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_enable_custom_container":false,"_custom_container_max_width":"","_is_legacy_styles_disabled":true,"_is_thumbnail_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,332,327],"tags":[32,10,261,28,81],"class_list":["post-1299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fashion","category-style","category-zero-waste","tag-beauty","tag-fashion","tag-fashion-history-related-reading","tag-sustainability","tag-sustainability-featured"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.5 (Yoast SEO v26.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How Does Textile Recycling Work? - The Good Trade<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Are our donated clothes really being recycled? 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