Eco-friendly clothing isn't eco-friendly at all

Between 2010 and 2013, the clothing brands Nike, Adidas, and Patagonia made public commitments to increase their use of recycled polyester (rPET) in the manufacture of their clothing. Approximately 98% of rPET comes from plastic bottles, and Nike claims this practice diverts about 1 billion bottles from landfills and waterways annually.

By 2015, these companies had expanded rPET use across mainstream product lines, and other companies followed suit, including H&M, Shein, and Zara, to broaden their appeal to the eco-conscious consumer base.

However, a recent study carried out by the Microplastic Research Group at Cukurova University in Turkey has revealed that the clothing industry’s efforts to reduce waste and microplastic exposure have been a colossal failure.

The study found that rPET actually creates 55 per cent more microplastic pollution particles during washing than virgin polyester. These particles were nearly 20 percent smaller, making it even easier for them to spread into the environment.

Regarding the study’s findings, Urska Trunk of Changing Markets Foundation says, “It exposes recycled polyester for what it is: a sustainability fig leaf covering fashion’s deepening dependence on synthetic materials.”

Nike’s polyester clothing was the worst offender, shedding more than 30,000 fibers per gram of sample clothing, several times greater than other companies.

The industry’s efforts to divert plastic waste and reduce energy use may have been well-meaning, but not only does rPET clothing still shed large amounts of microplastics, but it often can’t be recycled repeatedly, and may displace bottle recycling from higher-value uses.

You can learn more about the study’s findings and the clothing industry’s response in this article from Euronews:
https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/12/11/from-nike-to-hm-how-the-fashio...