Sustainability and Circularity Updates – September
Sep 23, 2025
The industry is constantly unleashing new projects, innovations and collaborations designed to improve sustainability and reuse. Each month, we’ll bring you the latest in sustainability and circularity news so you can stay up to date on developments.
Circularity News
Textile-to-textile recycling is progressing steadily, with several companies piloting technologies, forming brand partnerships and preparing to scale production.
U.S.-based textile-to textile recycling pioneer Circ agreed to a deal to provide circular materials at scale to Spanish next-gen textile R&D company Pyratex, which has already developed fabrics with Circ’s recycled polyester and lyocell fibers, but is now set to scale volumes as Circ develops its first industrial scale plant in Saint-Avold, France.
Danish fashion retailer Bestseller partnered with textile recycler Re&Up to mass produce T-shirts made from recycled polyester from textile waste. Re&Up, which is based in the Netherlands but part of the Turkish Sanko Group, targets to produce virgin-like next-gen cotton and polyester. Bestseller’s brand ONLY has transitioned 11 jersey styles to recycled polyester from textile waste through a collaboration with Re&Up and Deniz, marking over 100,000 garments and aiming to scale circular production to 1 million tons by 2030.
Australian recycling company Samsara Eco, which works in partnership with athleticwear brand Lululemon, launched its first facility in Jerrabomberra, Australia, integrating enzymatic recycling technology to scale production of low-carbon, virgin-equivalent materials like nylon 6.6 and polyester from apparel waste.
ReHubs will launch a strategy on Sept. 22. to address Europe’s textile waste crisis by scaling textile-to-textile recycling, mobilizing 5-6 billion euros in investment, and aiming to recycle 2.5 million tons by 2032.
Sustainability News
Environmental regulation for textile and apparel sectors is diverging across regions. The EU faces stricter rules and rising sustainability demands, while U.S. policy may ease emission reporting.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a proposed rule to end the GHG Reporting Program (GHGRP). Zeldin says this will save American businesses up to $2.4 billion in regulatory costs while maintaining the agency’s statutory obligations under the Clean Air Act (CAA).
The European Parliament has given its final green light to the revision of the Waste Framework Directive (WFD), which includes an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme for textiles. Environmental campaigners welcomed the move but also said it left room for improvement after member states blocked more ambitious measures following a political shift at the last election.
Carbonfact, the environmental data platform for the apparel and footwear sectors, launched what it calls the “first free solution” to help brands calculate their official “French Environmental Cost” and instantly compare it to industry benchmarks. The launch of the Eco-Score Benchmark tool comes ahead of France’s upcoming environmental labelling scheme for textiles, introduced under the recent “Anti-Waste Law for a Circular Economy” (AGEC) legislation.
The Apparel Impact Institute (Aii) unveiled a new financial tool aimed at scaling the deployment of proven textile decarbonization solutions that are hard to implement due to long payback periods. Aii launched its Deployment Gap Grant (DGG)—following an industry event in India and after extensive collaboration, including a 100-day sprint, with suppliers and brands—with $1 million in seed funding and pilot projects in India to support supplier decarbonization by bridging ROI barriers for technologies like heat pumps and solar sludge dryers.
