Date/Time
Date(s) - 04/11/2026
18:00 - 20:00
Location
Press Club Brussels Europe
Categories
What happens to used and waste textiles exported from the Nordics? Does the EU need new controls on textile exports?
A new study from @Eunomia Research & Consulting, which combines trade data analysis, stakeholder insights, and the largest known textile track-and-trace study of its kind, will answer these questions at a free-to-attend research launch event at the Brussels Press Club in November.
Supported by @Handelens Miljøfond, @the Nordic Council of Ministers and Shape Foundation, this project used 200 digital trackers to follow discarded textiles from the Nordic region to destinations across the globe.
Why is this an important question today?
From 2028, all EU Member States will be required to establish Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes for textiles, making producers financially responsible for collection, sorting, reuse, recycling, and end-of-life treatment.
Many of the used textiles collected in the Nordics are exported, and some export routes are not transparent. After sorting elsewhere in Europe, significant quantities are exported again. It appears that most stay in Europe, but it is difficult to know their final destinations. While many items go on to be used again, there is a risk of the costs and impacts of managing unwanted textiles being shifted from the Nordics to the developing world. EPR is expected to increase the amount of textiles that need to be managed, especially those not suitable for reuse in the Nordics.
At the event you will learn:
- The destinations of exported Nordic textiles.
- What the track-and-trace data reveals about reuse, recycling, and disposal outcomes.
- What the findings mean for textile policy across the Nordic region and Europe, including the introduction of mandatory textile EPR schemes.
- How transparency can help drive more circular and responsible textile systems.
- Key considerations for businesses, policymakers, and organisations operating across the textile value chain.
Alongside leading voices across the apparel and textile value chain, we will discuss:
Do these findings strengthen the case for tighter controls on textile exports, or should the focus be on improving transparency and traceability?
We will be joined by @Rasmus Nordqvist, @Kaj Pihl, @Domantas Tracevičius, @Kathrine Kirkevaag, @Joe Papineschi, @Jessica Fairbrother, @Vita Ellis.
We are also hosting, Mapping Nordic textile exports and the path to system change, a webinar with the @ Norwegian Fashion & Textile Agenda – more details coming soon.
Agenda
Introduction to event
Hear from Rasmus Nordqvist, Danish Member of the European Parliament, Greens/EFA
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Mapping Nordic textile exports: Insights for EU’s circular textile transition
Research presentation (+ Q&A) – Jessica Fairbrother, environmental consultant and textile specialist, Eunomia and Vita Ellis, sustainability consultant, Eunomia
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Panel discussion (+Q&A)
Panel discussion hosted by Eunomia Chairperson Joe Papineschi from Eunomia with leading industry voices.
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