Key Insights
Essential data points from our research
The fashion industry contributes to approximately 10% of global carbon emissions, which is more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined
Approximately 20% of global wastewater is produced by the fashion industry
It takes about 2,700 liters of water to make just one cotton shirt, which is enough for one person to drink for 2.5 years
The average consumer buys 60% more pieces of clothing than 15 years ago
Clothing items are kept for half as long as they were in the year 2000
In the UK, the average person has 118 items of clothing in their wardrobe
The equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is landfilled or incinerated every second
Approximately 92 million tonnes of textile waste are created globally each year
Between 2000 and 2015, the volume of clothing waste doubled from 7 million to 14 million tonnes annually
Less than 1% of materials used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing
Only 12% of materials used for clothing are recycled in some way (mostly downcycled into insulation or cleaning cloths)
The second-hand clothing market is projected to be double the size of fast fashion by 2030
Textiles are the largest source of primary microplastics accounting for 35% of global microplastic pollution to the oceans
A single wash load of polyester clothes can release 700,000 microplastic fibers into the environment
Roughly 2 million tonnes of microfibers are released into the ocean every year from the washing of synthetic textiles
Consumer Habits & Usage
- The average consumer buys 60% more pieces of clothing than 15 years ago
- Clothing items are kept for half as long as they were in the year 2000
- In the UK, the average person has 118 items of clothing in their wardrobe
- 26% of clothes in UK households have been unworn for at least a year
- Americans throw away approximately 81 pounds (37kg) of clothing per person annually
- One in three young women in Britain consider clothes 'old' after wearing them once or twice
- The average garment is worn only 7 times before being discarded in the US
- Extending the life of a garment by just nine months would reduce its carbon, water, and waste footprints by 20-30%
- 40% of consumers admit to buying clothes they never wear
- UK consumers spend approximately £980 million on new clothes that are never worn
- Returns of online clothing purchases generally range between 20% and 40%, increasing the likelihood of waste
- 19% of consumers discard clothing simply because they are bored with it
- Nearly one-third of shoppers buy clothing with the specific intent of returning it
- 50% of people throw unwanted clothes directly in the trash rather than donating or recycling
- The average American family spends $1,700 on clothes annually
- In China, clothing utilization has decreased by 70% over the last 15 years
- Fast fashion brands launch up to 52 micro-collections per year (one per week)
- Social media influence is cited by 39% of consumers as a key driver for buying clothes they don't need
- 69% of consumers say they are willing to pay more for sustainable products but sales data shows a gap in action
- 88% of consumers say they would like brands to help them be more environmentally friendly
Interpretation
We're turning our wardrobes into temporary landfills: buying 60% more clothes than 15 years ago, keeping garments half as long and wearing them only a handful of times, fueled by weekly micro-collections, social media pressure and easy returns, squandering billions and vast resources even though most consumers say they want sustainable choices.
Landfill & Incineration
- The equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is landfilled or incinerated every second
- Approximately 92 million tonnes of textile waste are created globally each year
- Between 2000 and 2015, the volume of clothing waste doubled from 7 million to 14 million tonnes annually
- 85% of all textiles thrown away in the US are dumped into landfills or burned
- Up to 59,000 tonnes of clothing arrive at the port of Iquique in Chile annually, much of which ends up in the Atacama desert
- In NYC alone, residents discard 200,000 tons of clothing and textiles every year
- Synthetic fibers like polyester can take up to 200 years to decompose in a landfill
- $500 billion of value is lost every year due to clothing being barely worn and rarely recycled
- 73% of the world's clothing eventually ends up in landfills
- Textile waste occupies nearly 5% of all landfill space
- In the EU, textile waste amounts to approximately 4 million tons per year
- Only 2% of the final weight of waste generated by the apparel sector is composted
- Ghana receives about 15 million used garments every week, of which 40% is discarded immediately as waste
- Incinerating clothes creates environmental toxins and releases greenhouse gases; in the US alone 3.2 million tons of textiles were combusted in 2018
- Fast fashion waste is expected to surge to 134 million tonnes per year by 2030
- The Kantamanto market in Ghana has a 60% unsaleable rate for imported bales of clothing, leading to massive local landfills
- Decomposing textiles in landfills release methane, a greenhouse gas 28 times more potent than CO2
- In Australia, 6,000 kilograms of fashion and textile waste are discarded every 10 minutes
- Canada produces about 500 million kilograms of textile waste per year
- Shoes can take up to 1,000 years to break down in a landfill due to Ethylene Vinyl Acetate
Interpretation
We are sending the equivalent of a garbage truck of clothes to landfill or incineration every second, turning our wardrobes into time capsules of pollution that generate 92 million tonnes a year, squander $500 billion, let polyester and shoes outlive generations, and poison air, soil and communities from New York to Ghana and the Atacama.
Microplastics & Chemical Pollution
- Textiles are the largest source of primary microplastics accounting for 35% of global microplastic pollution to the oceans
- A single wash load of polyester clothes can release 700,000 microplastic fibers into the environment
- Roughly 2 million tonnes of microfibers are released into the ocean every year from the washing of synthetic textiles
- Microfibers from synthetic fabrics have been found in the stomachs of fish and shellfish sold for human consumption
- 73% of deep ocean fish have been found to contain microplastics linked to textile fibers
- 20% of industrial water pollution comes from textile dyeing and treatment
- Over 8,000 synthetic chemicals are used to turn raw materials into textiles
- The washing of synthetic textiles releases about 0.5 million tonnes of microfibers into the ocean annually
- 65% of microplastics found in the Arctic ocean are fibers, predominantly polyester
- A study estimated that we unknowingly ingest the equivalent mass of a credit card worth of plastic every week, partly sourced from clothing fibers in water
- Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs), toxic to aquatic life, are frequently detected in wastewater from textile laundering
- Leather tanning is one of the most toxic industries due to the use of chromium, affecting local water supplies
- Microfibers have been identified in drinking water samples worldwide with 83% of samples containing plastic fibers
- Acrylic fabrics release nearly 730,000 microfibers per wash, which is 1.5 times more than polyester
- About 2.2 million tons of microfibers will enter the ocean between 2015 and 2050 at current rates
- 29% of the microplastics in the world's oceans originate specifically from synthetic car tires and synthetic textiles
- During the dyeing process, an average of 10-15% of dyes are released into the environment
- Airborne microplastics from clothing are now being found in the air we breathe, particularly indoors
- Citarum River in Indonesia is considered one of the most polluted rivers in the world largely due to 400+ textile factories dumping chemicals
- Conventional cotton relies on aldicarb, parathion, and methamidopho, causing heavy chemical runoff
Interpretation
Our clothes have become a Trojan horse of pollution, shedding hundreds of thousands of microplastic fibers with every wash, flushing thousands of toxic chemicals from dyeing and tanning into rivers and oceans, and sending microfibers into fish, drinking water and the air so that the garments meant to protect us now quietly contaminate our plates, lungs and planet.
Production & Resource Impact
- The fashion industry contributes to approximately 10% of global carbon emissions, which is more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined
- Approximately 20% of global wastewater is produced by the fashion industry
- It takes about 2,700 liters of water to make just one cotton shirt, which is enough for one person to drink for 2.5 years
- The production of a single pair of jeans requires approximately 7,500 liters of water
- Cotton farming is responsible for 24% of insecticides and 11% of pesticides used globally despite covering only 2.4% of the world's arable land
- The fashion industry consumes around 93 billion cubic meters of water annually, enough to meet the needs of five million people
- Clothing production has roughly doubled between 2000 and 2014
- Approximately 70 million barrels of oil are used each year to make polyester fiber for clothing
- Textile production generates 1.2 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year
- The apparel industry's global emissions are projected to increase by 50% by 2030 if current trends continue
- 43 million tonnes of chemicals are used in textile production every year
- Producing one kilogram of cotton generally requires 20,000 liters of water on average globally
- Synthetics like polyester now make up over 60% of global fiber production
- The carbon footprint of a polyester shirt is approximately double that of a cotton shirt (5.5 kg CO2e vs 2.1 kg CO2e)
- 98% of the fashion industry’s future growth is expected to happen in emerging markets where environmental regulations may be less stringent
- The textile industry is the second largest polluter of local freshwater in the world
- 150 billion garments are produced globally every year
- Approximately 15% of fabric intended for clothing ends up on the cutting room floor as waste
- Viscose production is linked to the logging of 150 million trees annually
- Using recycled polyester instead of virgin polyester reduces carbon emissions by 37%
Interpretation
Buying into fast fashion is literally dressing the planet to death: the industry already makes about 10% of global carbon emissions, more than international flights and shipping combined; produces roughly 20% of the world's wastewater; consumes 93 billion cubic meters of water a year, including roughly 2,700 liters for a single cotton shirt and 7,500 liters for a pair of jeans; relies on synthetics for over 60% of fibers and about 70 million barrels of oil a year to make polyester; emits 1.2 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent and uses 43 million tonnes of chemicals while logging 150 million trees annually for viscose; churns out 150 billion garments a year with 15% of fabric wasted on the cutting room floor; and unless we dramatically scale reuse, recycling (using recycled polyester can cut emissions by about 37%) and stronger regulation in emerging markets, those emissions are on track to rise by roughly 50% by 2030.
Recycling & Circular Economy
- Less than 1% of materials used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing
- Only 12% of materials used for clothing are recycled in some way (mostly downcycled into insulation or cleaning cloths)
- The second-hand clothing market is projected to be double the size of fast fashion by 2030
- 70% of the world's population wears second-hand clothing, yet only small fractions are collected systematically
- Mixed blends of fibers (like cotton-polyester) make up a large portion of waste and are currently technologically difficult to recycle
- 56 million tonnes of clothing are bought each year, but the resale market only recirculates a fraction of this volume
- The global second-hand apparel market is expected to grow 3 times faster than the global overall apparel market
- 42% of millennials say they shop secondhand to reduce waste
- Sorting textiles for recycling is still largely a manual process, driving up the cost of circularity
- 60% of consumers say they would buy more secondhand if it were easier to browse and purchase
- Rental clothing models could reduce the carbon footprint of attending a wedding by roughly 6 times compared to buying new
- Germany collects about 75% of its used textiles, having one of the highest collection rates
- In the US, the textile recycling industry provides approximately 45% of the world's used clothing exports
- Fiber-to-fiber recycling could scale to 18-26% of gross textile waste by 2030
- Automated sorting technologies could generate more than 1.5 billion Euros in value for the European recycling industry
- 95% of discarded textiles can be reused or recycled, yet the majority are not
- Resale saved consumers over $450 billion over the last decade
- Brands launching resale shops increased by 275% in 2021
- If everyone bought one used item instead of new this year, it would save roughly 6 billion lbs of CO2 emissions
- Upcycling typically requires 58% less energy than producing new products from virgin materials
Interpretation
We are sitting on a landfill of potential: 95 percent of discarded textiles could be reused or recycled and resale has saved consumers over $450 billion, yet less than one percent is remade into new clothing because mixed fiber blends, manual sorting, poor collection rates and limited fiber to fiber recycling keep the industry churning out roughly 56 million tonnes a year even as secondhand, rental and automation offer huge carbon and economic wins if we actually make reuse easy.
References
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