Goodwill® and Reju™ announced that, in collaboration with WM, they have aligned on initial plans to pursue a multi-year initiative designed to help advance textile recycling in North America. They plan to develop a collaborative model for regional textile collection, sortation, reuse and recycling that is intended to divert more nonwearable textile materials from the waste stream.
Currently, a small percentage of textiles is recycled. According to Textile Exchange’s annual Materials Market Report, globally, of the 124 million tonnes of textiles produced in 2023, less than 1 percent of the total fiber market consisted of recycled textiles. This planned collaboration seeks to create a system that captures a greater percentage of discarded textiles for resale or regeneration, helping textiles go to their next best use.
Goodwill and WM, North America’s leading provider of comprehensive environmental solutions, plan to work together on pilots to collect, sort and grade discarded textiles for resale. A portion of the remaining textiles, not suitable for resale, are expected to be provided to Reju, the progressive textile-to-textile regeneration company, with a supply of feedstock to potentially be recycled and regenerated into new materials when Reju builds a U.S.-based facility. The program is intended to contribute to creating a circular textile-to-textile ecosystem.
The planned project builds on the research conducted by Goodwill funded by the Walmart Foundation to assess fiber composition of unsold textiles and develop the skills and systems to transform unwearable textiles into recycling feedstock.
Owned by Technip Energies and relying on technology originating with IBM research, Reju is developing the infrastructure to take certain textile waste and regenerate it at scale, starting with polyester. The end product – Reju Polyester – is expected to have a 50 percent lower carbon footprint than virgin polyester and can be regenerated infinitely. In September, Reju opened its first demonstration plant – Regeneration Hub Zero – in Frankfurt, Germany, which is expected to begin producing Reju PET in 2025.
“To tackle the challenges posed by discarded textiles, we need radical collaboration and cooperation, and through our potential project with Goodwill and WM, we are building the ecosystem to achieve textile circularity,” said Patrik Frisk, chief executive officer of Reju. “Reuse is, and will continue to be, the highest value and is essential to the circular economic model for the benefit of all. Yet, among the products that are not reused, less than 1 percent are recycled globally today. A textile-to-textile circular ecosystem can only be optimized when more textiles are diverted from the waste stream and into the recovery cycle. Goodwill and WM are looking to play a critical role in recovery through the collection and sorting of textiles in North America.”
Reju anticipates building a U.S.-based regeneration hub to serve the American market, with certain material collected through Goodwill and WM that are not viable for resale, is expected to feed into the U.S. hub.
Local Goodwill leaders from across North America have been working with Goodwill Industries International’s sustainability team to develop the potential project. The Goodwill steering committee is comprised of leaders from Goodwill of Delaware and Delaware County (Wilmington), Goodwill of the Finger Lakes (Rochester, New York), Goodwill Industries of West Michigan (Muskegon), Goodwill of Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia (Maple Shade, New Jersey), Goodwill Industries of South Florida (Miami), Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona (Phoenix), Goodwill Industries Ontario Great Lakes (East London), Goodwill Renaissance Quebec, (Montreal), and Goodwill of Tenneva Area, Inc., (Kingsport, Tennessee).
These initiatives are expected to continue to create jobs and additional revenue to fund Goodwill’s vital workforce programs and services. Revenue from the sale of donated goods stays in local communities to support job training, job placement and other essential services for community members who face obstacles to employment. Goodwill plans to recover the value in nonwearable textiles to continue support for its workforce development programs.