CRSD Hosts Industry Partnership Workshop on Textile Trade Code Reform

The workshop - using the groundbreaking Cambridge Policy Boot Camp (CPBC method- is convened in partnership with the  UK Textile Recycling Association (TRA) and the European Recycling Industry Confederation (EuRIC). 

Proposals generated during the workshop will be used by EuRIC and the TRA to advocate for trade code reform, by national governments and the World Customs Organisation. 

By pushing for more specific and nuanced trade codes, the aim is to better differentiate between reusable textiles, recyclable feedstocks, and true waste, while also accounting for new recycling technologies and improving data collection on the growth of the sector. 

Ms Julia Ettinger, General-Secretary of the European Recycling Industry Confederation states:  

“Current customs trade codes for textile waste and second-hand clothing are woefully inadequate. They fail to reflect industry practices and provide insufficient guidance for customs officials. This creates significant legal ambiguities that hinder our ability to sustainably recycle and reuse textiles."

The workshop comes at a critical time, as the textile industry seeks to rapidly expand the use of second hand clothing and recycled fibres – all of which are traded internationally and need efficient, transparent customs trade codes to operate. 

Mr Alan Wheeler, CEO of the Textile Recycling Association states: 

“Reforming trade codes will strengthen the legal, regulatory, and policy foundation necessary for the massive growth we need in recycling textile waste and second-hand clothing”.

Professor Nazia M. Habib, founder and director of CRSD states: 

"We're pooling the collective expertise of the textile sector to create alternative specifications for trade codes in support of their sustainability transition. This project is an excellent example of how our partnership with industry stakeholders, and our methods, can deliver real impact”.

This CBPC drew on earlier work by the Centre, funded by the National Environment Research Council (NERC), to analyse the EU Sustainable and Circular Textiles Strategy using systems-based methods developed by Professor Habib.  This analysis identified the role of strategic institutional and legal reform, as part of a global value chain, as key to the global transition of the EU textiles sector. 

For more information about the workshop or to request an interview, please contact: crsd@landecon.cam.ac.uk

The Challenge Note that supported this workshop can be found here.