Set up with the Confédération des métiers de l’environnement, the scheme is intended to support the emergence of recycling solutions, “including for plastics”. This is a strategic area, particularly for the textile industry: polyesters represented 52.2% of the fibres produced worldwide in 2019. Of the 57.7 million megatonnes produced, 14% came from recycling, an increase of 5 points over ten years.
However, the roadmap for the circular economy (FREC) set up by the executive intends to halve landfill sites and, above all, to aim for 100% recycled plastics by 2025. This will involve multiplying the outlets for these plastics. France would produce nearly 5 million tonnes of plastic waste each year, of which only nearly a quarter would be recycled for the time being.
It is therefore to strengthen this sector that the Valorisation accelerator intends to provide support to specialised structures for twelve months. Advice, training and contacts will be at the heart of the system, which also intends to direct the structures towards the most promising technologies and outlets. 29 structures have already been selected to join the accelerator.
The confinements have not been without consequences on the reuse of textile waste in 2020, as the French have sorted massively in their cupboards. In France, 63 centres sort 248,000 tonnes of products each year, 57.8% of which will be reused and 33.5% transformed into rags or yarn. Legally obliged to take charge of the end-of-life of their products, 4,200 brands have commissioned the ReFashion association (ex-ECO-TLC) to steer the strategy for the collection and reuse of textile waste.