recycle and reuse

As an nation we throw away over 1 million tonnes of clothes every year and DEFRA consider textiles to be the fastest growing item entering the waste stream. With the advent of "fast fashion" we need to maximize the scope of textile recycling and reuse.

Traditionally a lot of environmental policy has focused on the production stage of textiles but the popularity and rapid growth of low cost clothes has increased the amount of waste and the need to recycle textiles.

In 2007 DEFRA launched the Sustainable Clothing Roadmap as one of 10 products for which roadmaps are being developed as part of DEFRA's strategic priority of Sustainable Consumption and Production. The roadmaps aim to provide a process for the key stakeholders in the textile industry to agree and implement actions for improving the sustainability performance of the selected products. The rag 'n' phone man textiles recycling scheme is an innovative part of this solution, allowing the pubic to make a conscious decision to dispose of their unwanted clothes and shoes in a controlled and effective manner which not only benefits themselves but the wider environment as well. Check section "Where does it go" to see the end markets.

In addition to unwanted clothes, as a nation we have been hoarding ninety million mobile phones after upgrading to new models. As well as textile recycling it is vital to encourage people to recycle mobile phones to help the environment and help to keep unnecessary landfill waste to a minimum.