European textile industry have reservations on ESPR approved by EU parliament

The Euratex textile industry trade body has protested prioritizing the textile industry for special treatment in the proposed European Union’s Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) prioritizes the textile industry for special treatment.

The ESPR has been approved by the EU parliament that requires all products to be made to last longer and be easier to repair, upgrade and recycle. It also includes special measures for priority areas, including a ban on the destruction of unsold textile products.

European Apparel and Textile Confederation (Euratex) represents the interests of 160,000 European textile companies and said the regulation should be based on a more “inclusive and feasible” approach.

“While Euratex recognizes the importance of accelerating the green transition and welcomes the progress on the legislation, it regrets the European Parliament’s approach to target the textile industry in a regulation designed to be a framework legislation for all sectors,” it said in a statement.

The trade body pointed out that the lack of legislative consistency across sectors would create additional costs and administrative burdens for companies. “Euratex regrets that the European Parliament has overlooked the plea for legislative coherence on substances of concern and for keeping the ESPR aligned with existing chemical legislation to avoid overlapping or conflicting regulation,” added the statement.


The trade body further argued that the eco-design requirements for textiles should be based on reliable data, and supported by thorough analysis and impact assessments.

Talks will now begin between Europe and member state governments on the ESPR proposals which were originally unveiled by the European Commission in March 2022 as part of a circular economy package.

Euratex has also expressed concern about the European Parliament’s position on the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED), also approved by MEPs this week, because of the inclusion of standalone finishing plants.