Valuing our clothes

A third of all clothes bought in the UK go to landfill!  If they were recycled instead they could generate £140 million a year in revenue, according to new research.

The ‘Valuing our clothes’ study provides the first ‘big picture’ view of the environmental impacts of clothing, incorporating both the financial and environmental aspects of its whole life cycle, from raw material and manufacture to purchase, use and disposal.

Key findings from the report include:

- around 350,000 tonnes (31%) of used clothing ends up in landfill every single year!

- Nearly half of adults surveyed also said they put at least some of their clothing into bins.

- UK households owns around £4,000 worth of clothes each – but around 30% is never worn.

- 65% of UK consumers said that they buy or receive pre-owned clothes.

- 73% of people donate clothes to charity.





The report goes on to outline a range solutions including establishing ‘buy-back’ schemes in shops, promoting repair and using more high-durability fabrics.

Source: WRAP's 'Valuing our clothes' report