Circ, a sustainable textile company and partner of environmental nonprofit Canopy, has announced plans to establish a commercial-scale textile-to-textile recycling facility in Saint-Avold, northeastern France.
This $500 million plant is projected to begin operations by 2028, with a capacity to process up to 70,000 metric tonnes of textile waste annually. The facility is expected to create 200 job opportunities and will focus on recycling mixed-fibre textiles, such as poly-cotton blends, which are a significant contributor to global textile waste.
The recycled materials will be transformed into recycled cellulose and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which can be used as raw materials for producing new textiles.
Innovative Technology for Sustainable Textile Recycling
Circ will utilize hydrothermal technology, a process that breaks down polyester without damaging the cotton fibres, enabling the simultaneous recovery and reuse of both materials. This innovative approach allows the facility to recycle even complex fabric blends that were traditionally difficult to process, converting them into virgin-equivalent fibres for future textile production.
By recycling textile waste, the plant will help reduce the fashion industry’s dependence on forest-based resources and polyester produced from fossil fuels, thereby significantly cutting the sector’s carbon footprint.
Impact on Forest Conservation
More than 300 million trees are logged annually to produce textile fibres like viscose and rayon, often sourced from ecologically vital forests crucial for climate stability and biodiversity. Circ’s facility will contribute to reducing this dependency, supporting sustainable and responsible production processes in the fashion industry.
Industry Support and Recognition
Environmental nonprofit Canopy praised the project as a groundbreaking initiative for revolutionizing the fashion industry’s supply chains.
Nicole Rycroft, founder and executive director of Canopy, highlighted its significance by stating “This facility will be a game-changer. For decades, fashion has been locked into a take-make-waste model — fuelling pollution, forest degradation, and climate instability. Circ’s new mill flips that script: transforming worn-out clothes into new textiles, reducing reliance on both forests and fossil fuels, and proving that the future of fashion is circular, low-carbon, and here. This will be a game-changer.”
The launch of Circ’s recycling facility marks a pivotal step toward achieving a circular, low-carbon future for the fashion industry.
