Drastically reducing production, beyond changing the way we produce, is the only viable solution to make the textiles sector more sustainable, the RREUSE network has outlined in a position paper on the EU Textiles Strategy launched earlier this year.
- To phase out the linear model, European institutions should regulate the sector through fiscal and legislative means while supporting the re-use sectors as the more sustainable, circular and socially responsible alternative, the paper has outlined.
- The paper has also listed two other recommendations: decrease the amount of textile waste through ambitious waste policies, and develop circular and social textile value chains.
The recommendations: The three recommendations are broken down into 10 components:
- Drive systemic changes in textile production’s design and consumption patterns
- Reduce overall per capita production and consumption of textiles.
- Set strong eco-design requirements to create reusable and longer-lasting textiles.
- Use information requirements to enhance products’ reusability.
- Use public procurement as a tool to enhance socially and environmentally responsible purchase.
- Decrease the amount of textile waste through ambitious waste policies
- Set an ambitious and adequate ban on the destruction of unsold new goods.
- Provide a waste management framework supporting waste prevention and preparing for re-use as a priority.
- Ensure that potential future EPR schemes support preparing for re-use activities.
- Support re-use operators in their effort to reach the proximity principle.
- Develop circular and social textile value chains
- Promote existing circular business models as social enterprises active in post-consumer textile management.
- Promote and support social enterprises in their skilling and upskilling efforts.
The problem with production and consumption: The RREUSE argument is that the Strategy does not set any target for production/materials consumption reduction and therefore fails to tackle the fast fashion issue.
- The strategy should set an EU-wide quantitative target for material and consumption footprint reduction with specific objectives for textile products for the sector, and an accompanying timeline.
- Re-use can represent both an environmental and social alternative to fast fashion, presenting more affordable options to consumers. In addition, social enterprises developed innovative online stores to facilitate second-hand purchases such as Label Emmaüs or Thriftify which propose affordable and sustainable alternatives to new products.
- The Strategy should introduce taxes on all virgin resources used in the textiles sector, as well as taxes on disposable, non-essential goods and advertising that promotes fast fashion consumption behaviour.
- The Commission should encourage member states to introduce a minimum or zero VAT for the repair and sale of second-hand supply of textile goods and services.
- Eco-design requirements should be tackled through the prism of re-use to ensure textile products still hold value when reaching the second-hand market brands should not be allowed to continue to keep up the same level of (over) production as long as they use certain amounts of recycled content.
- The Strategy should introduce measures prioritising the waste hierarchy and waste prevention, which will ultimately push companies to extend the lifespan of their textile products.