BOSTON—The world is producing clothes and other textiles at an unprecedented rate—and discarding them just as fast. In 2024, global textile waste reached 120 million metric tons, with 80% ending up in landfills or incinerated. By comparison, only 12% of the total was reused, 1% was collected but neither reused nor recycled, and 7% was deemed suitable for recycling. Of that 7%, less than 1% was made into new fiber. If left unchecked, textile waste could increase to more than 150 million metric tons a year by 2030.

A new report from Boston Consulting Group (BCG), titled Spinning Textile Waste into Value , estimates the total raw material value of unrecovered textile waste to be approximately $150 billion a year.

“The costs of waste are staggering. We’re throwing away billions in value while missing a huge opportunity to make the fashion industry more sustainable and resilient,” said Catharina Martinez-Pardo , a BCG managing director and partner, and coauthor of the report. “This is the moment to transform textile circularity from niche to norm.”

Five Actions for Scaling a Circular Textile Economy

Although recovering the full $150 billion in value is unlikely—since not all raw material waste can realistically be captured—substantial untapped potential exists. With the right investments to build a large-scale circular textile economy, waste recycling rates could exceed 30%, yielding new fibers with a raw material value of more than $50 billion and creating approximately 180,000 new jobs.

To achieve this vision—and build a profitable system for all stakeholders—the industry should focus on five key actions:

  1. Promote demand for textiles with recycled fibers.
  2. Collect more waste.
  3. Modernize sorting.
  4. Scale effective recycling solutions.
  5. Invest in innovation.

Realizing that potential will require coordination and commitment from industry players, the public sector, and consumers.

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Media Contact:
Eric Gregoire
+1 617 850 3783
gregoire.eric@bcg.com

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