Europe’s textile waste collection and sorting system is facing severe structural strain, threatening to derail the continent’s ambitions for a circular textile economy, according to a new report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) titled “Textile Waste at a Tipping Point: Unlocking Europe’s Circular Potential.”
BCG warns that the backbone of the system—its collection networks and sorting infrastructure—is collapsing as several leading operators either shut down or file for bankruptcy. The crisis stems from a funding gap, with eco-organisations and public authorities paying too little per tonne of collected textiles to cover rising operational costs.
Growing wave of closures across Europe
France: Social enterprise Le Relais, one of the country’s largest textile collectors, halted all collection activities in mid-2025. In a dramatic protest, it began unloading unsorted textile waste outside major retailers, warning it would not survive beyond the year without emergency support.
Germany: Two major collectors, SOEX (filed for insolvency in Oct 2024) and Texaid (June 2025), collapsed due to shrinking export markets, stricter sorting standards, and unsustainable costs.
United Kingdom: Textile Recycling International entered administration in early 2024, prompting the Textile Recycling Association to warn of a “sector-wide collapse.” Job losses and processing shutdowns are accelerating as resale markets weaken and second-hand exports face new restrictions.
Why the system is breaking down
At the heart of the crisis lies a triple pressure point:
- Funding Deficit – Current subsidies and payments do not match the real costs of collection, transport, and sorting.
- Market Saturation – Second-hand markets, both domestic and export, are oversupplied, with resale prices falling.
- Fast Fashion Waste – A flood of low-quality, unsellable garments from ultra-fast fashion is overwhelming recyclers and charities.
As a result, margins are collapsing, and operators face the paradox of handling more waste at a higher cost while earning less per garment.
Europe’s circularity goals at risk
BCG cautions that unless urgent interventions are introduced, Europe’s circular textile ambitions could unravel:
- Currently, only ~1% of textile waste is recycled into new textiles.
- The majority is either reused via second-hand markets, downcycled into rags or insulation, processed into solid recovered fuel (SRF), or disposed of via landfill/incineration.
- The EU aims to slash landfilling, with the Landfill Directive requiring municipal waste landfilling to fall below 10% by 2035. This is pushing countries to impose landfill bans and higher taxes.
The Sustainability Paradox
Reuse remains the most sustainable option, powered by charity shops, resale platforms, and exports. Yet this ecosystem is fragile: oversupply and declining demand are stalling growth.
Incineration, while a last resort, remains carbon-intensive. Without carbon capture or mitigation, it risks undermining the EU’s climate neutrality targets.
What Needs to Happen Next
BCG calls for urgent policy intervention to stabilize the sector, including:
- Revised funding mechanisms to reflect the true cost of textile collection and processing.
- Incentives for textile-to-textile recycling technologies to scale up beyond the current 1% recovery rate.
- Stronger producer responsibility schemes to make fashion brands financially accountable for end-of-life textiles.
Without these measures, Europe risks a systemic collapse of its textile waste management system—jeopardizing both its circular economy transition and climate commitments.
