Online shopping increases textile waste in Europe

A new report highlights the growing problem of textile waste in Europe due to increased online shopping and cheap clothing. In 2022, people in the European Union purchased about 19 kilograms of clothes and other fabrics each, up from 17 kilograms in 2019. However, they also discarded around 16 kilograms of clothing each year, leading to a total of 7 million metric tons of textile waste across the region. The report finds that 85 percent of discarded clothes are not reused or recycled. Instead, many end up in landfills or are burned. To combat this issue, EU countries are now required to have separate systems for collecting textile waste. By 2030, the EU aims for all textile products sold in its market to be durable, repairable, and recyclable. Online shopping and social media have significantly contributed to the rise of fast fashion. Retailers can offer new styles at very low prices, which encourages more purchases. However, since customers often cannot try on clothes before buying, many end up ordering multiple sizes, leading to high return rates. Up to 44 percent of returned items may be destroyed instead of being resold. Among various consumer products, clothing and footwear are the fifth most resource-intensive category. The report revealed that producing textiles for EU households used 234 million metric tons of raw materials. This amount is lower than in 2010, indicating that fewer resources are now needed per clothing item.