Textile waste tracking exposes transparency gaps

BRUSSELS — Tracking 200 discarded textiles from five Nordic countries has exposed gaps in export traceability, say researchers, prompting calls for better garment quality and investment in reuse, repair and recycling.

Research by Bristol-based sustainability consultancy Eunomia and Norwegian waste specialists Mepex found 71% of the tracked items had their last recorded location in Europe, led by Poland at 30% and Slovakia at 18%.