Day 39: Some shocking truths about textile waste

8/2/2024

Day 39: Some shocking truths about textile waste

I recently read some new data showing that barely a quarter of the textile waste produced in EU countries is aside for reuse and recycling, while 11.6kg ended up in general household waste.

The fast fashion industry has long been a cause for concern, with issues ranging from low wages and poor working conditions to significant environmental impacts and resource wastage. My own alarm bells rang when I realized the overwhelming volume of clothes being churned out and discarded — a mind-boggling 100 billion pieces annually, according to recent estimates.

This realization led me to launch the 90 Days of Shein challenge. For the next three months, I’ll be donning a limited selection of clothes from the Chinese ultra-fast fashion giant to test whether fast fashion really is disposable. This experiment is my way of understanding the true lifespan of these garments.

New data from the European Environment Agency (EEA) reveals that in 2020, EU countries produced 6.95 million tonnes of textile waste, equating to about 16kg per person. Only 4.4kg per person was set aside for reuse and recycling, while a hefty 11.6kg ended up in general household waste.

When it comes to the fashion industry, production process is just one part of the picture. Very troubling is the fate of the 100 billion garments produced each year once they’re no longer desired. The EEA’s data paints a grim picture: in 2020 alone, the EU generated nearly 7 million tonnes of textile waste, with a mere fraction of it being recycled.

Clothing and household items are the primary contributors to this mountain of waste. The EEA estimates that 4% to 9% of products are destroyed before they even get used, translating to between 264,000 and 594,000 tonnes of textiles wasted annually.

There is a silver lining, albeit a faint one. The amount of textile waste sent to landfills decreased from 220,000 tonnes in 2010 to 150,000 tonnes in 2020. However, the EEA warns that without significant investment in sorting and recycling infrastructure, much of the collected textile waste will continue to be incinerated, landfilled, or exported outside the EU. This concern is just as relevant for the UK and other countries.

Everything I wore on Day 39 of the 90 days of Shein challenge: