A compelling case for action
Global Goals, National Action
As the climate emergency intensifies, and the global textiles industry expands to meet growing demand, the need for faster, effective, collaborative action to reduce our climate impact is greater than ever. In April 2021 WRAP launched the next phase of transformation for UK textiles, focusing on a move away from ‘take, make, dispose’ towards a circular business model.
By adopting a common, globally relevant vision, Textiles 2030 is delivering the UK national roadmap, convening the fashion and textiles sector around priority actions with circularity at the core.
Circular innovation drives sustainable business growth, stimulating the opportunity for UK textiles to secure a leading position in international trade. The time has come to disrupt our take-make-dispose model to transform the way we produce, buy and use textile products.
Textiles 2030 builds on the learnings of SCAP (Sustainable Clothing Action Plan 2012 – 2020) and represents a huge step change in sector collaboration, in pursuit of a more circular, sustainable future for UK fashion and textiles.
What will signatories do?
Signatories will play their part and collaborate to:
- Accelerate progress towards a circular economy for textiles
- Reverse the growing carbon impact of textile products placed on the UK market by setting a Target for reducing whole life emissions, Measuring the impact of your product portfolio, and Acting on the priorities
- Engage customers to buy, use and dispose of clothing and textile products in new ways that reduce climate impact and resource use
by taking direct action on:
- Measuring the whole-life impact and circularity of your product portfolio, including Scope 3 GHG emissions
- Setting targets to reduce impacts and increase circularity
- Making and implementing an action plan
- Reporting progress to WRAP annually
- Taking part in cross-industry discussions to share insights, identify priorities and develop solutions to key issues
- Influencing consumers to engage in more sustainable behaviour
- Contributing to evidence-based discussions on policy developments
Measurable targets to 2030
Signatories will set individual targets, report on progress and collaborate to deliver group targets at national level, contributing to global priorities for the sector.
Against a 2019 baseline, each signatory business placing products on the market will work towards the following targets by 2030*:
Reduce the aggregate greenhouse gas footprint of new products by 50%, sufficient to limit global warming to 1.5°C in line with the Paris Agreement on climate change and achieving Net Zero by 2050 at the latest
Reduce the aggregate water footprint of new products sold by 30%
Roadmap Ambitions for circular textiles:
Partner signatories will work together to achieve the following:
- Design for Circularity: agree good practice design principles, including durability, recyclability, use of recycled content and minimising waste, and implement them as appropriate to their business model and customer base, to lower the impacts of products placed on market in the UK
- Implement Circular Business Models: pilot reuse business models as appropriate to their product ranges, share learning, and develop large-scale implementation to extend the lifetime of clothing in the UK – and decouple business growth from the use of virgin resources
- Close the Loop on Materials: set up partnerships to supply and use recycled fibres for new products, accelerating the commercialisation of fibre-to-fibre recycling in the UK.
*Target definitions and values are subject to final agreement. Signatories will collaborate to agree milestones, metrics and targets to deliver the Circularity Ambitions and Roadmap, and work with Governments and other stakeholders.