Italy ranks as the worst textile polluter in Europe, with the country producing 466 tonnes of textile waste every year, according to new research from sustainable fashion brand LABFRESH, which found Italians spend a proportionately large amount on new clothing each year, at £920 per person. The United Kingdom ranked as the fourth worst offender.

The United Kingdom’s total textile waste is less than half that of Italy, at 206 tonnes per year. Brits spend a similar annual sum on clothing to their Italian counterparts—at £980—despite the country's gross domestic product per capita being 25 per cent higher.

Residents of Poland, Ireland and France take the most sustainable approach to clothing, it found.

In contrast, Spain produces the least textile waste, discarding just under 99 tonnes of textiles a year, i.e., 2.1 kg per person, compared to the UK's 3.1 kg.

Of the 3.1 kg of annual textile waste each Briton produces, only 0.3 kg is recycled and 0.4 kg is reused, the study found. However, 0.8 kg is incinerated and 1.7 kg are disposed of in landfill.

Only Austrians spend more a year on clothes than Brits, totalling £1,082 per person.

Published On : 21-01-2020

Source : Fibre 2 Fashion