United Kingdom

In a major step, the UK’s laundry and hospitality industries have agreed to work together to gradually reduce and remove single-use plastic from the processing of bed linen by 2030.

The Institute of Positive Fashion (IPF) of the British Fashion Council (BFC) has launched a new report on the environmental impact of returns in the fashion industry, with a suggested framework of recommendations.

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and the Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) have set up a taskforce which will explore a range of methods, including evaluating recycling and sorting practices, in a bid to reduce the environmental impacts of fashion and textile waste.

After developing an enzyme technology to reduce single use plastics, researchers are now working on creating a similar process for polyester textiles.

Researchers have found that the annual release of 6,860–17,847 tonnes of microfibre from UK's washing is a relatively small problem in comparison to the fashion industry's waste problem, with 365,000 tonnes of clothing going to landfill every year.

A survey conducted by the University of Aberdeen and trade justice charity Transform Trade has said that large fashion brands sourcing clothes from Bangladesh for the UK market are allegedly paying below the cost of production.

UK's largest circular fashion enabler, Advanced Clothing Solutions (ACS), has partnered with Circularity Capital, with an investment of £10 million to meet its expansion plans.

A first of its kind project to develop innovative, multi-disciplinary solutions to sort and recycle fashion goods and textiles at scale in the UK is inviting applications.

A roadmap has been worked out to develop Circular Fashion Ecosystems in the UK in a bid for change that will benefit both the planet and people, creating thriving city-level circular fashion ecosystems that meet the needs of industry.

The British Fashion Council (BFC) has released the initial findings from Phase 2 of the Institute of Positive Fashion’s Circular Fashion Ecosystem Project, which  has identified the opportunities and challenges in the industry's transition to a more circular model.