Too many discarded textiles end up in landfill or incineration. The SorTex project will increase the amount of textile waste that is collected and reused or recycled. The project's main focus areas are analysis and testing of collection and sorting methods, development of sustainable business models for textile waste, and development of strategy recommendations that can benefit municipalities and society at large.
In Denmark and Sweden, municipalities are responsible for collecting textile waste from citizens, but how is this done wisely? At SorTex, we test different collection methods and offer suggestions for best practice.
What is the best way to pre-sort municipal textile waste so that as much as possible can be reused and recycled? In SorTex, we research and test methods and the latest technologies and compile them in a practical handbook.
In SorTex, we investigate and test how textile waste can be recycled in circular business models so that it becomes a resource and business potential in the future - and not just a global challenge.
Textile consumption is one of the biggest contributors to climate change and environmental impact. Within the EU, approximately 7.5 million metric tons of textile waste are generated annually, of which about 360,000 tons come from the Nordic countries. On average, only 30–35% is collected. Some of this is sorted and recycled within the EU, but most of it has so far been exported to developing countries, where it ends up in landfills or is incinerated.
To curb this trend, the EU Waste Directive stipulates that member states must implement separate collection of textile waste by 2025 at the latest. In Denmark and Sweden, municipalities will be responsible for collecting and managing this locally.
The purpose of SorTex is to investigate and find solutions for how municipalities can collect the large volumes of textile waste and sort them efficiently so they can be reused, recycled, and given new value in new, circular business models. The expected outcome of the SorTex project is a higher collection rate, increased pre-sorting capacity and quality, and a reduction in textile waste that ends up in landfills or incineration.
SorTex brings together 13 partners in Denmark and Sweden in a partnership between public and private actors across the entire textile waste value chain - from collection to pre-sorting, reuse and recycling. The collaboration makes it possible to combine technologies and competencies across borders that are crucial to solving the international challenges posed by the large amount of textile waste in the world, which no one can solve alone.
The project is supported by funding from the European Regional Development Fund and the EU Interreg Øresund-Kattegat-Skagerrak program.
Herning Municipality, Sustainable Herning, the Herning & Ikast-Brande Business Council, NewRetex A/S, and VIA University College.
Borås Energy and Environment AB, Cyclothe AB, the City of Gothenburg, the Municipality of Svenljunga, SYSAV (South Skåne Waste Management Company), Trollhättan Energy AB, the Municipality of Vänersborg, and Wargön Innovation AB
The project period runs from September 1, 2024 to August 31, 2027.