The fashion industry is one of the world’s largest contributors to textile waste. Its supply chains are also notoriously complex, making monitoring and regulating sustainable practices a challenge.
To address this, French recycling company Weturn is improving traceability in textile production and use by providing a recycling service that tracks the company’s fabric supply chain from start to finish.
First, Weturn picks up and transports unsold products and recycles them into new yarns for creating recycled raw material (RRM) fabrics.
Afterwards, it will take two to three months from pick-up for the companies to receive their recycled textiles, which includes a full traceability report and a Global Recycled Standard certification.
Every traceability report includes life cycle assessments covering water consumption, pollution, CO2, and other waste emissions – ensuring there is no greenwashing in the supply chain.
The recycling company has several production partners in Spain, Italy, France, and Portugal, to minimise transport and other emissions.
“In a finished product, there is a resource that can find a second life locally rather than destocking abroad without traceability,” said Weturn.
Despite efforts to reduce waste in the fashion industry, it is still expected to grow in the coming years, making traceability a complex task even for the world’s largest brands.
However, innovations like Weturn’s prove that sustainability is possible.
