The European Commission’s CORDIS Results Pack: Achieving a Circular Economy for the Textile Sector highlights the outcomes of several EU-funded research and innovation projects working to accelerate circularity across the textile value chain. Published in 2026, the report examines developments in textile recycling, digital traceability, circular business models, stakeholder engagement, and sustainable product design. Together, the featured projects demonstrate how technological innovation, collaboration, and policy support can help address textile waste and strengthen Europe’s transition towards a more circular textile ecosystem.

Key Insights

• Textile recycling requires coordinated action across the entire value chain
  The report highlights that successful textile circularity depends on collaboration between collectors, sorters, recyclers, brands, researchers, and policymakers. Several projects demonstrated how integrated approaches can improve collection, sorting, recycling, and the use of recycled fibres in new products.  
• The T-REX project demonstrated the potential of textile-to-textile recycling
  T-REX developed and tested an EU-based circular value chain for post-consumer textile waste, successfully recycling polyester, polyamide 6, and cellulosic materials. The project also delivered a blueprint for scaling textile-to-textile chemical recycling in Europe and showed that mixed-composition garments can be recycled and transformed into new products.
• Textile waste remains a significant challenge in Europe
  According to the report, approximately 6.94 million tonnes of textile waste were generated in the EU in 2022, with around 85% ending up in mixed household waste streams where reuse and recycling opportunities are limited.  
• Digital technologies can improve transparency and traceability
  The TRICK project developed a digital platform using blockchain and artificial intelligence to support traceability, circularity, sustainability assessments, and future Digital Product Passport requirements. The platform was designed to help SMEs improve compliance while increasing transparency across textile supply chains.  
• Digital Product Passports are expected to play a growing role in circular textiles
  The report notes that the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) introduces requirements that will improve access to information about product composition, environmental performance, and lifecycle impacts. These tools are expected to support more sustainable purchasing, production, and recycling decisions.  
• Consumer engagement remains essential for circularity
  The tExtended project demonstrated that technical solutions alone are not sufficient. Through social innovation workshops and community activities across several European countries, the project promoted textile reuse, pre-sorting, and consumer participation in circular practices. 
• Circularity combines technology, policy, and behavioural change
  Across the projects featured in the report, a common finding is that achieving large-scale circularity requires a combination of advanced technologies, supportive policy frameworks, sustainable business models, and active stakeholder engagement.

The report demonstrates how EU-funded projects are developing practical solutions to address textile waste, improve resource efficiency, and strengthen circular value chains. By combining innovation, collaboration, and digital technologies, these initiatives provide valuable insights into the future of a more sustainable and circular European textile sector. 

Readers can consult the full report for detailed project findings and recommendations on European Union Website.