The European Apparel and Textile Confederation (EURATEX), one of the leading organizations of the global textile and clothing industry, has signed a new initiative on sustainability and recycling. EURATEX and 20 incoming members announced ReHubs Europe, a new international non-profit organisation aiming give a boost to the textile recycling at a kick off meeting hosted by apparel and retail brand Mango.
The launch of ReHubs Europe comes after three years of rigorous planning and the release of a Techno-Economic Study that examined the financial, environmental, and economic cases for expanding textile waste recycling in Europe. Key participants in the textile value chain, including textile producers, fashion labels, recyclers and collectors, the chemical sector, and technology suppliers, will come together at ReHubs.
ReHubs will bring together different players from the industry
ReHubs aims to recycle 2.5 million tons of textile waste by 2030, which requires up to 250 industrial projects across Europe, covering different types of fibre-to-fibre recycling. The industry answers to the impending EU regulation, which mandates the mandatory collection and sorting of textile waste by 2025, by presenting ReHubs Europe. This non-profit organization will enable to upscale recycling capacity and gather different players from the value chain to work together.
ReHubs Europe will be managed by Executive Director Chris Deloof who has a long-standing experience in the textile sector. Saying that he is thrilled to part of this alliance, he highlighted that building tomorrow’s circular textile industry together with ReHubs Europe is a privileged work alongside with the pioneers of the industry. EURATEX President Alberto Paccanelli also remarked his thoughts about ReHubs as follows: “This initiative proves that we are committed to taking our industry forward towards a new circular business model, even during today’s difficult times. I am particularly happy to see all segments of our textile value chain joining forces; ReHubs Europe will give a fresh boost to the textile industry in Europe. I also thank Robert van de Kerkhof (Lenzing) and Mauro Scalia (EURATEX) for all the work they have done to achieve today’s landmark.”
ReHubs Europe will be based in Brussels and will work closely with EURATEX. Any businesses that want to invest in the recycling of textile waste in Europe can join this organization as a member.
