Taking action to drive change
The topic of Circular Economy is becoming increasingly important for the textile industry. At this state, in most countries there is no sufficient data available regarding the actual amount of factory textile waste that occurs during production and its potential to be reutilized for further usage. To unlock the full potential of textile waste and to ensure its usage as a new material resource, the integration of textile waste management practices and the establishment of new infrastructures are needed to secure a constant flow of high-quality secondary raw materials.
Initiated by Asia Pacific Rayon (APR), in partnership with Reverse Resources (RR) and Closed Loop Fashion (CLF), we are conducting a textile waste mapping survey amongst garment factories based in Bangladesh, Indonesia and Sri Lanka to evaluate countrywide accurate primary data of the overall amount of waste.
Reducing the use of virgin materials
As one of the world’s largest producers of viscose staple fibre and the first fully integrated viscose rayon producer in Asia, APR is working to drive change within the man-made cellulosic fibre industry. Their commitment includes the sourcing of 20% of their feedstock from alternative or recycled materials by 2030 through establishing an innovative recycling plant for processing textile waste, which will significantly advance the industry standards.
Collaborating for a sustainable future
To accelerate circularity in Asia’s textile industry, APR seeks partnerships and plans to invest in technology innovation to mainstream the use of recycled textiles in MMCF production. APR collaborates with Reverse Resources , an online platform for mapping, matchmaking and tracking of recyclable textile waste flows, and Closed Loop Fashion Consulting (CLF), an established hub for applied sustainability and circular economy practices in the textile and apparel industry.
Fig.1: Example of results of textile waste study for Indonesia’s post-industrial textile waste volumes 2021; study conducted by Reverse Resources (RR) & Closed Loop Fashion (CLF) on behalf of Asia Pacific Rayon (APR); graphic publicly presented by APR Director Mr. Basrie Kamba during the conference “Konsinyering Penerapan Ekonomi Sirkular Pada Industri Tekstil”, Bandung, 20.07.2022
