EU textile overhaul gains momentum with Circula-TEX launch

The European textile industry, long burdened by fragmented regulation, inefficient waste management, and an uneasy relationship with sustainability, is being pulled into a new chapter. The catalyst? Circula-TEX, an EU-funded innovation programme that seeks to stitch together the continent’s disjointed approach to textile waste.

Coordinated by RINA Consulting and supported by Horizon Europe funding, Circula-TEX convenes 19 partners across nine countries, from legacy manufacturers and fashion houses to cutting-edge research labs and trade associations. Together, they aim to introduce a harmonised Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework that could reshape how textiles are designed, labelled, discarded, and reborn.

The four-year initiative signals more than just bureaucratic alignment; it’s a statement of urgency and intent. While the EU’s textile consumption ranks among the highest globally, recycling rates remain dismally low. Member States have adopted vastly inconsistent policies, creating operational inefficiencies and confusion across supply chains. Circula-TEX intends to address this head-on by piloting scalable circular models that put eco-design and product traceability at the centre of innovation.

Among the project’s most tangible outputs will be a unified labelling system aligned with the forthcoming Digital Product Passport, allowing for smarter tracking of materials post-consumption, from the sorting facility to second-life retail shelves. Equally ambitious are the eco-design guidelines, which encourage manufacturers to future-proof products for repair, reuse, and recycling.

Unified labelling system

The fashion industry has often relied on rhetoric when it comes to circularity; Circula-TEX presents the infrastructure to begin institutionalising it. And in an era where luxury giants and fast-fashion players alike are being scrutinised for their environmental footprints, such initiatives are not just timely, they're vital.

Partners include Hugo Boss in Germany, Global Fashion Agenda in Denmark, and Texaid in Switzerland, alongside Italian mainstays like Yamamay and Confindustria Moda. Their collective presence suggests that the project is not only academic but industry-relevant, a necessary condition for meaningful change.

Still, questions remain. Will such a huge initiative be able to overcome the habits of globalised production and consumption? And can a top-down regulatory push really rewire the incentives of a sector built on volume and novelty?

Circula-TEX does not claim to have all the answers. But in placing circularity at the centre of textile policy, it sets the stage for a more coherent, accountable industry, one less reliant on green gloss and more invested in system-wide transformation.

For consumer goods conglomerates watching from the sidelines, many of whom have ventured into fashion, personal care, and lifestyle brands, this may well be the blueprint for broader sustainability reform. The textiles sector, once peripheral in environmental discourse, is becoming the bellwether of industrial responsibility in Europe.