Your recycling and what happens to it

Textiles

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Recycling benefit

3,264t
Amount recycled
19,025t
CO2 avoided
£368,879
Disposal saving

Textiles represent a significant waste stream in Northern Ireland as a result of constantly changing trends and ‘fast fashion’ manufacture and production methods. Out of the 1.54 million tonnes of unwanted textiles thrown out every year in the UK, 620,000 tonnes is sent for re-use or recycling (around 70 per cent of which is exported overseas).

Around 336,000 tonnes of clothing ends up in landfill every year, despite much of it still being wearable and holding commercial value. While 57 per cent of people in the UK say that they recycle their textiles, 41 per cent say they’re not aware of recycling or re-use facilities for textiles, such as clothes banks or charity shops.

The textile recycling process involves pulling apart fabrics into fibres and re-spinning them, but textiles are more versatile than other waste streams in that clothes can be re-used without much processing.

Encouraging re-use and recycling of clothing and textiles would contribute to a 10-20 per cent reduction of the industry’s carbon, water and waste footprints, as well as benefitting charities around the UK and abroad that raise money through the sale of unwanted clothes or provide them to people in need. So, make sure you try to take a few old clothes down to the charity shop every so often!

You can learn more about how to recycle clothing and textiles on the Recycle Now website.

Country Tonnes
Northern Ireland 2,253t
England 945t
Scotland 56t
Company Country Tonnes
Cookstown Textile Recyclers (Hot Pursuit Enterprises Ltd) Northern Ireland 1,730t
Edward Clay and Son ltd England 473t
John Cotton Group Ltd England 473t
Ulster Supported Employment Ltd (USEL) Northern Ireland 370t
Compass Advocacy Network Ltd (Can Can) Northern Ireland 82t
All-Tex Recyclers Ltd Northern Ireland 71t
Oxfam Scotland 28t
Salvation Army Trading Co Ltd Scotland 28t