Resources

The 2024 Textiles Market Situation Report updates on the present state of the UK textiles market.

In this report, commissioned on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), WRAP looks at the areas throughout the lifecycle of textiles where the level of textile waste produced is an issue, in order to identify ‘hotspots’.

The report looks at waste by fibre type, waste by life cycle stage, and waste by product type to pinpoint not only where textile waste is happening, but also the types of textile waste occurring.

This status report summarises the proliferation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems for the textiles waste stream. 

Are people open to the idea of ecolabels?

This report looks at the role that eco-labelling could play in providing citizens with information on the durability, recyclability, and repairability of products, inclusive of home textiles, furniture, and electrical appliances. The research also explores people’s receptivity to using ecolabels, and ultimately, their potential for influencing the products we decide to purchase. 

Over the last decade, the circular economy has been a huge success story. In the UK it has grown by 20% between 2014 and 2019. 

While roughly equal numbers of jobs are held by men and women across the UK, only 25% of jobs in the circular economy are held by women. This understates and undervalues the role of women who frequently undertake unpaid activities such as volunteering within the sector.

From new voluntary agreements in Colombia and Denmark to engaging citizens in 12 countries through Food Waste Action Week, our Annual Report gives an insight into what WRAP was busy working on in 2022/23. 

In September 2022, WRAP commissioned online consumer research into the current attitudes and behaviours of UK citizens in relation to home textiles, including what’s influencing consumers to make a home textiles purchase, through what routes are they buying and disposing of home textile items and what are their in-use habits in relation to those items. 

In the 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy for England, textiles was highlighted as a priority waste stream for which the ‘polluter pays’ principle should be invoked and Defra committed to review and consult on the potential of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme and product standards for the fashion and textiles industry.

WRAP’s work on textiles is focussed on improving the sustainability of products, and particularly on reducing the environmental impact of the full life cycle of products, from cradle to grave.

Off the starting blocks

Through Textiles 2030, the whole system comes together. Our shared mission is to catalyse the fashion and textile industry’s transformation from linear to circular - drawing on the energy, experience, and innovation of all corners of the sector to drive this change forward.

In autumn 2021, WRAP commissioned two large scale pieces of online consumer research on the life expectancy of different items of clothing in UK wardrobes and the UK’s appetite for adopting new models of clothing acquisition – some of which discard the notion of owning clothes all together.