Recover Textile Systems Joins T2T Alliance to Amplify Recycled Textile Voice

Recover Textile Systems, a leading Spanish specialist in cotton and cotton-blend recycling, has officially announced its membership in the T2T Alliance. This strategic move sees a prominent player in sustainable textile production join a representative body established earlier this year by four other pioneering textile recycling specialists, aiming to amplify the voice of the sector in crucial policy discussions.

Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Banyeres de Mariola, near Alicante, Recover Textile Systems has rapidly expanded its operations, establishing dedicated textile recycling facilities not only in Spain but also across key global textile hubs including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and El Salvador. The company's decision to join this European recyclers' lobby stems from a conviction that the unique challenges and contributions of textile-to-textile recycling businesses have, until now, been significantly under-represented in political and legislative discourse. "We have joined the T2T Alliance because it is essential that policymakers hear the voice of textile-to-textile recyclers (T2T) when drafting regulations that will foster circularity and competitiveness in our sector," explained Ana Rodes, Recover’s Director of Sustainability. She further emphasized, "By supporting and contributing to the Alliance, we can help ensure our sector gains the visibility it needs among policymakers and key stakeholders to drive meaningful change."

The T2T Alliance was established as a collective effort by several prominent innovators in the textile recycling space. Its founding members include the Swedish company Circulose (formerly known as Renewcell), fellow Swedish firm Syre, Virginia-based specialist Circ, and Re&Up, a subsidiary of the Turkish industrial conglomerate Sanko. This collaborative initiative brings together diverse expertise and geographical representation, united by a common goal to advance circularity within the European textile industry.

At its core, the organisation is dedicated to championing the perspectives and needs of textile recyclers within the framework of European legislation. The Alliance aims to actively work towards removing existing barriers that hinder the sector's growth and scalability, while also advocating for the mandatory introduction of requirements for the increased use of recycled materials in new textile products. Furthermore, a key objective for the Alliance is to promote a truly closed-loop approach to textile recycling, one that comprehensively encompasses all forms of textile waste, including post-industrial scraps, pre-consumer waste, and critically, post-consumer textiles.

The urgency and importance of the T2T Alliance's mission are underscored by recent industry figures. According to Textile Exchange data for the 2024 financial year, a staggering 132 million tonnes of fibre were produced globally. Alarmingly, only 7.6% of this total was recycled, with an even more minuscule proportion—less than 1%—originating from recycled textiles. The vast majority of recycled content currently comes from recycled bottles converted into synthetic fibres, highlighting a critical gap in the textile-to-textile recycling infrastructure and the immense potential for growth and impact that alliances like T2T are striving to unlock.