United Arab Emirates (UAE) Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029

United Arab Emirates (UAE) Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029

The UAE textile recycling market has undergone tremendous transformation over the past couple of decades. Traditionally, the UAE handled its textile wastes in a very rudimentary way, wherein most of the textiles used to end up in landfills. With increasing awareness about environmental sustainability and professional handling of wastes, the UAE has indeed made considerable progress toward a more organized and effective system of recycling. The actual transition started in the early 2010s and is relentless in integrating circular economy principles into better waste management infrastructure. Sustainability is a very important concern in the UAE's textile recycling market. Ambitious targets to reduce landfill waste and increase recycling rates are set for the nation, adhering to the broader national sustainability objectives. One of the key focuses of UAE Vision 2021 is environmental protection and resource efficiency, which drives initiatives in textile recycling and other materials. The government has been very supportive to sustainability through a range of different programs and partnerships, such as the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 for green technologies and sustainable practices across industries, including textiles. Innovation plays a very key role in textile recycling in the UAE. Advanced technologies are being utilized by firms, including automated sorting systems and chemical recycling processes. For instance, the Dubai Textile Recycling Project is one example of initiatives that uses advanced technologies in efficiently sorting and processing textile waste. Such innovations are necessary in sorting the various kinds of textiles and for high-quality recycling outputs. The collection infrastructure has much improved in UAE. Municipalities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi have placed specific collection bins for textiles and collection points for recycling used clothing. Campaigns like ""Don't Waste It"" encourage residents to deposit the unwanted textiles in designated bins, hence easily depositing for recycling. Government policies have been vital in the process of developing the UAE's textile recycling market. Producers of textiles are made responsible by the EPR program for their products throughout their entire lifecycle until end-of-life disposal. In addition, the Waste Management Law of the UAE targets reducing the quantum of waste, enhancing its recycling, and focusing on the correct handling of waste from textiles.

According to the research report ""UAE Textile Recycling Market Overview, 2029,"" published by Bonafide Research, the UAE Textile Recycling market is anticipated to grow at more than 6% CAGR from 2024 to 2029. Coupled with high urbanization and economic growth rates, the UAE has recorded high levels of wastes from textiles. Demand for textile products increases with rising populations and consumer spending, which in turn increases the volume of wastes. In growing populations with increased consumer spending, demand for textile products rises, resulting in increased volumes of wastes. Such growth creates the requirement for effective recycling solutions to deal with the growing waste streams and reduce environmental impact. The economic impact of textile recycling within the UAE is very notable. The sector creates employment available from waste collection to sorting and processing. Investment in technologies and infrastructure related to recycling stimulates activity, which creates opportunities for innovation and development. Besides, recycling would also decrease dependency on virgin materials; this adds significant cost savings, hence promoting resource efficiency. It is in the light of this recent trend that the UAE was facilitating future progress in textile recycling. The UAE hosted the World Recycling Forum back in 2022, which dealt with worldwide recycling problems and solutions related to the management of textile wastes. Sharing best practices and technological advances within the recycling industry was facilitated at the forum. Other such initiatives, such as the Dubai Recycling Program or even collaboration with international organizations, put the UAE in a good light regarding the enhancement of its recycling capabilities and the integration of sustainable practices within its economy.

The area that the United Arab Emirates, with much-needed urgency, is now addressing, for textile circularity drives the ambitious sustainability goals of the nation. In partnership with other strategic partners, Tadweer is set to announce an 'Integrated Textile Circularity Initiative' in the emirates, touting consumer awareness about textile recycling and collaborative effort from public and private sector stakeholders to drive sustainable consumption towards a circular economy in the textile industry. The UAE is among the largest importers of used clothing in the world, with data from the OEC supporting the fact. There are over 40 ""multidisciplinary free zones"" in the UAE alone areas where foreign investors can own their companies outright and which are now known for harboring the importation of second-hand apparel due to financial exemptions and independent regulations. Free zones have led to problems with waste in other countries and in Chile's Atacama Desert, some 60,000 tonnes of textile waste has accumulated the unsellable remnants of what's imported via the Alto Hospicio free zone. Many garments are ripped. Some have holes; others are still in good shape. Towering over the 200 employees is the sheer volume that goes on to more than 4,000 tonnes overall. When it started out nearly 20 years ago in Sharjah, Hands Industries was one of the UAE's first recyclers of second-hand textiles. The business has boomed since then. Giant 150kg bags containing clothing from all four corners of the globe lie stacked 10-high. Everything from battered shirts, skirts and shorts is given a new lease of life. About 10 tonnes of items deemed unwearable are sent to the cutting factory to be turned into industrial cleaning rags. And each month, the operations department exports about 200 tonnes of bespoke-cut rags. The UK tends to want bigger cuts, Australia medium and Japan smaller varieties.

The UAE textile recycling market is developing at a fast pace as the country strives to reduce waste and increase sustainability. This is further segmented into various materials that present different recycling processes and challenges. Cotton, being one of the natural fibers in broad consumption, leads the textile recycling market in the UAE. The cotton recycling process involves mechanical methods. Cotton wastes are sorted, shredded, and spun into new yarns. With every cycle, the quality of the fiber worsens. This therefore sets a limit to how many times cotton can be effectively recycled. The UAE already started looking into new innovative solutions like chemical recycling, breaking down the cotton at a molecular level to higher values of re-use. Strategies such as the Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030 are engaged in building up this infrastructure, encouraging state-of-the-art recycling technologies for cotton and other such textiles. The major contributors to the UAE textile recycling market include polyester and polyester fibers, whose share has grown significantly over the recent times due to its extensivity in terms of application and recyclability. This process is generally followed by melting the polyester wastes and extruding them into new fibers. The UAE is investing in advanced recycling technologies, including chemical recycling, for more efficient and qualitative polyester recycling. Such factors make nylon and its fibers a special challenge within the textile recycling market. Even though nylon is recyclable, the process is highly complex and very power-consuming. Normally, mechanical recycling of nylon is done, but it generates lower-grade fibers. Chemical recycling, on the other hand, seems to be a very promising process in that it can yield high-grade nylon from waste. The UAE is trying new ways of recycling nylon, with companies and institutions working on more efficient and sustainable recycling processes. Wool, being a natural fiber, is another material being recycled in the UAE, although in lesser quantities. Woolen textiles are sorted and cleaned before they are shredded into fibers, which are then spun into new yarn. Wool is not as widely recycled as other materials, mainly because of its lower market share and processing problems associated with wool wastes. Other rags, such as silk, linen, and synthetic blended materials, are also being recycled in the UAE to a small extent. In these materials, the methods involved in their recycling differ greatly, depending on their structure and characteristics.

The United Arab Emirates textile recycling market is developing quickly, fostered by environmental awareness and greater government initiatives. The UAE holds the position of one of the massive retail and fashion hubs in the Middle East. This places apparel waste at the top in the textile recycling industry in the UAE, mainly due to high consumption rates and fast fashion dominating the scene. In particular, Dubai with its many shopping malls and a population so fashion-conscious generates a great amount of apparel wastes. In the case of Dubai's initiative ""Recycle for a Cause,"" residents are called upon to donate clothes that are no longer needed so that they can be sorted and resold or sent for recycling. The growing segment in the UAE's textile recycling market is home furnishing waste. With the booming real estate and hospitality sectors, there is a continuous inflow of textiles from the country's hotels, residential developments, and offices. Enviroserve UAE is one of the companies that have increased their capacity to recycle home textiles, such as curtains and bedding, and upholstery fabrics. Automotive textile waste, on a smaller scale, is important for the United Arab Emirates, now that it is focusing on sustainable transportation. With the growth in the automotive industry going up, so is the need to recycle textiles from vehicle interiors. Some local recycling facilities are developing specialized processes to handle these materials, often in conjunction with broader end-of-life vehicle recycling programs. The other major sources of textile wastes in the UAE include industrial textiles from the manufacturing sector, institutional wastes from hospitals and schools, technical textiles in construction and agriculture, etc. The volume of air travel through the UAE makes the country an important hub in relation to another specific source of textile waste the airlines uniforms, cabin furnishings. The UAE government has been active in promoting textile recycling. The country's Vision 2021 and subsequent initiatives toward sustainability have emphasized a great deal on waste reduction and recycling. For instance, Abu Dhabi's Tadweer, a center for waste management, has been increasing the rate of textile recycling.

The UAE textile recycling market is poised for exponential growth, having focused on both post-consumer and pre-consumer textile waste management. Being one of the hottest spots for fashion in the world, the UAE generates huge quantities of textile wastes hence, threats as well as opportunities for the recycling sector. One major share of the problem in the UAE consists of post-consumer textile waste in the form of clothes and household textiles. The fast urbanization and enhanced affluence in this country have resulted in increased textile consumption and disposal. The rate of recycling of these post-consumer textiles, however, is quite low in such countries, with a considerable amount said to end up in landfills or incineration. Groups like the Emirates Environmental Group are engaged in promoting collection drives for such textiles and creating awareness about their recycling. EEG's annual campaign, ""Clean Up UAE,"" involving textile collection, has been highly instrumental in engaging people and infusing a culture of sustainability. On the other hand, pre-consumer textile waste wastes formed in the course of manufacture holds an opportunity for growth for the UAE recycling market. Rags2Riches is one of the pioneering companies leading in the initiative towards turning pre-consumer waste into value-added products. It picks up fabric wastes from garment factories and upcycles them into handmade accessories, home decor, and fashion items. This idea gives the opportunity to make a waste reduction possible and creates jobs for underprivileged groups in the Philippines where the company has its operation. The UAE government has equally appreciated the importance of textile recycling and has put in place accompanying policies for the industry. Basically, the Dubai Can initiative, launched in 2022, was initiated to reduce single-use plastic waste and enhance sustainable practices in different industries, including textiles.

Both mechanical treatments and chemical ones are key to this UAE textile recycling market. It seeks to reduce the waste of textiles, thus promoting sustainability. Mechanical Recycling Mechanical recycling is one of the earliest known recycling procedures in the UAE, where textile is ground into small-size pieces by mechanical or physical processing practices. This is widely used to recycle both pre-consumer and post-consumer textiles into new yarns, which can further be introduced into the fashion supply chain once more. Mechanical recycling is an innovative process in the UAE and occupies a considerable share of the textile recycling market. Chemical recycling is an emerging process in the UAE and involves the breaking of textile waste down to the molecular level through chemical processes. It involves many re-entry points in the fashion supply chain. This is expected to lead to the imperfection of the purity of the output products compared to mechanical recycling. Still, a number of barriers do exist, such as exploration limitations for certain fiber types, including polyester, cellulose, and polycotton blends. In the UAE, the chemical recycling economy is expected to increase exponentially given the increased needs for sustainability and green products. Great strides in the growth of chemical recycling are expected in the country, bolstered by the various initiatives of the government focusing on ensuring sustainability and waste reduction.

Considered in this report
• Historic year: 2018
• Base year: 2023
• Estimated year: 2024
• Forecast year: 2029

Aspects covered in this report
• Textile Recycling market Outlook with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Various drivers and challenges
• On-going trends and developments
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

By Material
• Cotton
• Polyester & Polyester Fiber
• Nylon & Nylon Fiber
• Wool
• Others

By Source
• Apparel Waste
• Home Furnishing Waste
• Automotive Waste
• Others

By End-Use Industry
• Apparel
• Home Furnishings
• Industrial & Institutional
• Others

By Textile Waste
• Post-consumer
• Pre-consumer

By Process
• Mechanical
• Chemicals

The approach of the report:

This report consists of a combined approach of primary and secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and list the companies that are present in it. The secondary research consists of third-party sources such as press releases, annual reports of companies, and government-generated reports and databases. After gathering the data from secondary sources, primary research was conducted by conducting telephone interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducting trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this; we have started making primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting them in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us, we can start verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience

This report can be useful to industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations, and organizations related to the Textile Recycling industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing and presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.