
Wealth in Waste
This report is part of the “Sorting for Circularity: India” initiative led by Fashion for Good and its partners. It aims to explore the untapped potential of India’s textile waste industry to transition into a circular economy by identifying waste streams, analysing current practices, and suggesting pathways for systemic improvements across the value chain.
Executive Summary
India generates about 7793 kilotons (8.5% of global total) of textile waste annually. Despite being a leader in mechanical recycling, the country lacks circular systems due to an unorganised waste value chain, quality limitations, and limited technology adoption. Currently, 59% of waste is reused or recycled, but only a small portion re-enters the global supply chain. The report proposes that with improved traceability, infrastructure, and investment in recycling innovations, India can become a global leader in circular textile sourcing. A clear value hierarchy of waste types is proposed, and short- and long-term interventions are recommended to drive circularity and improve socio-economic outcomes.
Goals of the Report
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Quantify textile waste in India by type and source
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Map textile waste flows and value chains
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Identify gaps in current textile waste management
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Propose a value hierarchy of textile waste
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Recommend strategic, collaborative actions to achieve circularity in the industry
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Encourage formalisation and innovation to unlock the full potential of textile waste
Conclusion and Recommendations
India is well-positioned to lead in circular textile systems but must overcome major bottlenecks including informal value chains, low recycling quality, and lack of traceability. The report recommends:
- Short-term: Sorting at factory floors, blockchain-based traceability, pilot recycling technologies.
- Long-term: EPR policies, formal waste infrastructure, new recycling hubs, industry standards, and worker empowerment.
Realising this vision requires coordinated efforts by government, brands, recyclers, and communities to transition from a linear to a circular textile economy.
Glossary
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Circularity: Practices that optimise resource use and minimise waste across the entire production and consumption cycle, emphasising sustainability and economic efficiency
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Pre-consumer Waste: Waste generated during textile production (e.g., trimmings, unsold stock).
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Post-consumer Waste: Textiles discarded after use by consumers.
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Imported Waste: Second-hand clothes or rags imported for reuse or recycling.
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Downcycling: Recycling material into lower-value products.
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Mechanical Recycling: Physical processing of textiles into new yarn without changing fibre chemistry.
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Garneting/Willowing: Processes to recover fibres from used textiles.
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EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility): A policy approach where producers are responsible for the end-of-life impact of their products.
Stakeholders Involved
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Funders and Partners: Laudes Foundation, PVH Corp., TESCO, Target, Primark, Arvind Limited, Birla Cellulose, Welspun India, adidas, Levi Strauss & Co.
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Technology Partner: Reverse Resources
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Support Initiative: SU.RE project (CMAI & RBL – RISE Worldwide)
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Recycling and Research Hubs: Panipat, Amroha, Tirupur, among others
Relevant Resources

Sorting For Circularity Europe
The Sorting for Circularity Europe project was launched in early 2021 and initiated by Fashion for Good together with Circle Economy. The project was made possible by catalytic funding from Laudes Foundation and brand partners, adidas, BESTSELLER, Inditex and Zalando, with H&M Group as key project partners. The project addressed the need for data on textile waste in the market, identifying waste types and recycling opportunities.

Sorting for Circularity Framework
Launched in 2021, the Sorting for Circularity Framework aims to bridge the gap between the textile sorting and recycling industries by improving data collection on textile waste volumes and characteristics (such as composition, quality and colour). This initiative was designed to address the critical lack of information and implementation needed to enhance textile waste management and recycling processes using sorting and traceability.

Sorting for Circularity India
This project was designed to organise and optimise India’s textile waste supply chain. By evaluating various waste streams for collection, sorting, and pre-processing, the initiative aimed to enhance circularity in textiles. It sought to improve collection and sorting systems, foster recycling infrastructure, and introduce innovative solutions to generate new revenue streams and next-generation materials from textile waste-reducing reliance on virgin resources and minimising landfill and incineration.

Sorting for Circularity India: Post-Consumer Pilot
India generates around 3,944k tonnes of post-consumer textile waste annually, with 48% viable for recycling feedstock, though inadequate sorting and recycling systems prevent full utilisation. This project involved two primary pilots that tested sorting innovations: Matoha’s FabriTell desktop scanner for semi-automated sorting and PICVISA’s ECOSORT for fully automated sorting. The pilots aimed to assess these technologies’ ability to categorise waste by fibre and colour efficiently, ultimately facilitating quality feedstock production for recycling. Initial findings suggest India could effectively harness a closed-loop textile recycling system, with cotton and polyester blends as dominant waste types.

Sorting for Circularity India: Pre-Consumer Pilot
The Sorting for Circularity India Pre-Consumer Pilot aimed to organise the Indian textile waste market by establishing a circular economy that maximises value recovery from textile waste. This pilot addressed pre-consumer waste (factory floor cutting waste) and aimed to demonstrate a 360° closed-loop system, where factory waste is segregated, digitally traced, and then processed by recyclers to produce new fibres, which are returned to the production chain. The initiative sought to enhance transparency, traceability, and efficiency in India’s textile waste management system.

Sorting for Circularity Rewear
Fashion for Good expanded its Sorting for Circularity framework to address the challenge of sorting for rewearable textiles to understand better their resale potential and the demand across the second-hand market. We launched an 18-month initiative in January 2024 in collaboration with Circle Economy, brand partners adidas, Inditex, Levi Strauss & Co. and Zalando to enhance the sorting of rewearable textiles using innovative AI technologies. The project seeks to improve garment recovery for resale, promoting circularity in the fashion industry.

Sorting for Circularity USA
The project aimed to assess the potential for fibre-to-fibre recycling in the United States. The project evaluated consumer behaviour around textile disposal and analysed post-consumer textile waste to determine its suitability for recycling. The goal was to promote circularity by improving textile collection systems and supporting the development of recycling infrastructures and technologies.

Sort to Sustain
To address the gaps in post-consumer feedstock for the development of textile-to-textile recycling in India, FFG has initiated the Sort to Sustain (STS) Project, in line with the broader ambition of the Re-START Alliance. This project focuses on enhancing the quantity, quality, and price of feedstock to support the recycling industry. The project aims to establish a circular textiles system in India by creating a robust collection and sorting ecosystem for widespread recycling implementation. Leveraging insights from the Sorting for Circularity India project, it seeks to scale sorting and pre-processing infrastructure. The goal is to support the expansion of at least four waste enterprises and set up their Textile Recovery Facilities (TRFs) by 2030.
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Wealth in Waste
This report is part of the “Sorting for Circularity: India” initiative led by Fashion for Good and its partners. It aims to explore the untapped potential of India’s textile waste industry to transition into a circular economy by identifying waste streams, analysing current practices, and suggesting pathways for systemic improvements across the value chain.

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