Saviez-vous que le textile peut se transformer en accessoires de sport et de loisir ?
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When your waste becomes a resource
If your textiles or shoes can't be repaired or reused, all is not lost! On the contrary, they can be recycled! That means they're taken apart to make new yarn, which can then be used to make new clothes or turned into materials for other products. Would you like to turn your swimsuits into ski bindings or your jeans into building insulation? We'll explain how recycling works and show you where to drop off your items for a second life... Ready to get started? Yes, I'm interested!
What happens to your old clothes, linen and shoes once they've been dropped off at a collection point?
Collectors will first sort the items into three categories so that they can either be resold and reused, recycled, or converted into fuel. Here's how it works:
Category 1. Textiles in good condition are sent to charity shops and second-hand markets in France and abroad, where they are resold at affordable prices. Nearly 60% of the items deposited fall into this category and are in fact directly reused.
Category 2. Used textiles that can be recycled are sent to industrial circuits where their fibres are separated. The resulting fibres are used to make new products, mainly clothing or insulation for housing. Approximately one third of the non-reusable dropped off items are turned into new resources.
Category 3. Used textiles that cannot be reused or recycled are converted into fuel. They become an alternative to environmentally harmful fossil fuels to generate energy in a different way!
Category 1. Textiles in good condition are sent to charity shops and second-hand markets in France and abroad, where they are resold at affordable prices. Nearly 60% of the items deposited fall into this category and are in fact directly reused.
Category 2. Used textiles that can be recycled are sent to industrial circuits where their fibres are separated. The resulting fibres are used to make new products, mainly clothing or insulation for housing. Approximately one third of the non-reusable dropped off items are turned into new resources.
Category 3. Used textiles that cannot be reused or recycled are converted into fuel. They become an alternative to environmentally harmful fossil fuels to generate energy in a different way!
What are the environmental benefits?
Less waste, because all (or almost all) waste becomes a resource for the creation of new products! Less use of natural resources, as they are replaced by other resources and are no longer needed for production Less fertiliser and pesticides in the environment, because without recycled materials, the former would have been used to grow natural fibres Reduced carbon emissions and fewer negative impacts, because without recycling, used items would have been sent to landfill for destruction
Our key figures
268 161
tonnes of textiles and footwear dropped off and collected in 2023
32,5%
of items sent to recycling channels
0,15 %
Only were destroyed because they could not be recycled or reused
What happens to your clothes and shoes?
Adopting the right sorting habits also means asking yourself the right questions. Sorting gives your clothes, shoes and household linen a second life. Do you know what happens to them once they've been dropped off?
