Femnet e.V.

The fashion supply chain is being challenged by a rising global population, increasing wealth and consumerism in the emerging markets, and the phenomenon of fast consumption in the developed world. Enormous strains are put on natural resources to keep up with consumer demand and solutions are needed for the massive waste flows downstream. Currently the main solutions for garments that cannot be reused are landfill, incineration for energy recovery, and downcycling. The latter is the recycling of garments into lower value products, such as insulation or wipers. Landfill and incineration cost money and these options do not deal with the natural resources issue since they do not displace the virgin fibre textiles industry. Downcycling does displace virgin fibre production, but applications have low profitability. High value recycling or “garment to garment recycling“is the concept of recycling used garments and textile waste into new garment products. This concept can reduce some of the pressure on virgin resources, while at the same adding value to waste to make recycling profitable for companies. This research assessed the environmental performance of two garment to garment recycling systems and one scenario as well as one downcycling system, in comparison with their equivalent ones made from virgin materials. The approach was based on life cycle assessment, and the impact categories chosen were climate change, acidification, eutrophication and water consumption. The study included primary data from different processes in the life cycle, including mechanical and chemical recycling, textile collection and manual and automated sorting. 

Mehr Details

The fashion industry is one of the largest polluters in the business sector. Apart from the pollutions incurred during the production process, clothing disposal and landfill problem also impose a great problem to the environment and the situation has become increasingly adverse with the tremendous number of clothing being disposed every year. Many disposed garments are in fact in good condition that can be reused or they can be recycled into useful raw materials. The idea of closed-loop fashion supply chains has started to draw the attention in the industry. To achieve this, nevertheless, effective collection of post-consumer products is critical. In recent years, a number of fashion companies have been launching programs to collect used clothing from customers. The collected items are resold or donated as second-hand clothing, or are recycled into fibers or fuels, depending on their conditions. Based on secondary data, this study examines the used apparel collection (UAC) programs of four fashion retailers, namely: Fast Retailing Co. Ltd. (Uniqlo), Patagonia Inc., Eileen Fisher Inc. and Hennes & Mauritz (H&M). It discusses the features and the advantages of these retailer-facilitated UAC programs. 

Mehr Details

The Fashion market is characterized by the rapidity with which a product becomes outmoded.
Enterprises producing clothes, shoes, bags and other accessories generate wastes at a fast rhythm, due to the continuous change of collections. They must store notable quantities of textiles and components no longer used for production. Furthermore, the percentage of scraps of fabrics, leather and other materials, is often significant. Recycling can be applied to the Fashion sector in order to recuperate wastes and create original items, which can be particularly successful in a market where customers are increasing their sensitivity towards sustainability.
We describe the case of a prestigious Italian brand, manufacturing high luxury leather and fabric accessories where Eco Design and Recycling have been applied. A Life Cycle Assessment of a traditional product of the company is also presented to enhance the significant aspects of sustainability in Fashion. 

Mehr Details

Sustainability is an issue that increasingly concerns all those involved in the apparel industry, including textile manufacturers, apparel designers, retailers and consumers. This important book covers recent advances and novel technologies in the key areas of production, processing and recycling of apparel.

Part One addresses sustainable finishing and dyeing processes for textiles. The first two chapters concentrate on the environmental impact of fabric finishing, including water consumption, emissions and waste management. Further chapters focus on plasma and enzymatic treatments for sustainable textile processing, and the potential for improving the sustainability of dyeing technologies. Part Two covers issues of design, retail and recycling, and includes discussions of public attitudes towards sustainability in fashion, methods of measuring apparel sustainability and social trends in the re-use of apparel.

Mehr Details

Seit jeher wird die Sammlung gebrauchter Textilien in vielen Ländern unserer Erde durchgeführt und hat sich inzwischen zu einem bedeutenden wirtschaftlichen Faktor etabliert. In Europa werden Alttextilien bereits seit der Frühen Neuzeit systematisch erfasst und weiterverwertet. In den vergangenen Jahrzehnten haben sich Produktionsmethoden und das Konsumverhalten unserer Gesellschaft jedoch immens verändert: Kleidung wird weltweit in riesigen Mengen produziert, global vermarktet und rasant konsumiert. 

Mehr Details