Exploring the Business Case for Textile-to-Textile Recycling Using Post-Consumer Waste in the US: Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

Although the accumulation of post-consumer textile waste represents a serious environmental problem, the commercial potential of recycling this waste in the US is less established. The purpose of this research is to investigate the business case for using this waste as an input to textile-to-textile recycling. This research has three main objectives: explore the dynamics between post-consumer waste traders and recyclers; investigate challenges to faster scaling of textile waste feedstocks and the processing of this waste into new fibers; and provide theoretical and practical foundations for effective interventions in this area. The study employs a grounded theory approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eleven senior representatives from textile sorting and fiber recycling organizations with operations in the US. The results reveal that the primary barriers to progress are commercial in nature. There is no financial incentive to take actions needed to reduce environmental impact. As proposed, an expansion of market partnerships to broaden target feedstocks could allow the mounting waste problem to be meaningfully addressed. However, it is still unclear how infrastructure development in the US will be financed or conducted to address the identified barriers. Meanwhile, accumulation of textile waste in US landfills shows no signs of slowing down.