This stock of leftover fabric, also known as dead fabric, is gathering dust at fabric manufacturers around the world, says Bas Slootman, co-initiator of The Fabric Connector for RTL Z. These are fabrics that were initially made for clothing production. but in the end they are not used or sold.
Rejected due to knitting errors.
The problem is large scale. Clothing companies have to devise and produce their collections about a year and a half before they appear in stores. And all this is done based on estimates: quantities, colors, materials. “Brands often underorder or overorder,” he says.
Some fabric manufacturers work with a minimum order quantity and other fabrics are rejected due to weaving errors. The result is a huge surplus of fabric on the roll. “Nine times out of ten the rolls are still perfect for making clothes,” says the businessman.
Burned or thrown away
In the fight against waste, Slootman connects clothing manufacturers through his company with suppliers of waste materials, including producers and buyers. It’s a drop in the bucket, he says. “If these materials are not processed into something else, they are left in warehouses, sent to incinerators, or dumped in landfills.” And the textile industry is already one of the most polluting.
There are no concrete figures for the rest of the substances, says Peter Koppers, sustainability director at the trade organization Modint. It is estimated that approximately 10 to 20 percent of all fabrics produced for clothing production remain as unused fabrics or residual waste. A small part is destroyed. But there is also a “vibrant trade” in waste materials in clothing-producing countries in Asia, among others, according to Koppers.
In particular, fast fashion companies, such as H&M, Zara and Shein, contribute to the creation of the surplus, says Cecile Scheele, promoter of the Dutch Sustainable Fashion Week. These companies are sensitive to trends: collections follow one another quickly. Therefore, many garments have to be made quickly and they are not always liked by the public. “Then you’re left with that.”
More expensive brands also suffer from the problem. For example, luxury company LVMH, known for fashion brands such as Louis Vuitton, Kenzo and Christian Dior, has its own website where it attempts to sell fabrics.
Fast fashion companies H&M and Primark stated in response to RTL Z that they recognize the problem. “We are working hard to optimize supply to be in line with demand for our products,” an H&M spokesperson said.
They also participate in various initiatives to reuse as many materials as possible and offer guidelines to their suppliers. At the same time, the company claims that it has no idea of the exact amount of fabric left, because it does not produce or store the necessary clothing or fabrics itself. This is in contrast to LVMH, which has its own production facilities.
Produce to order
There is still no solution to the problem, says Slootman. As long as the industry does not change, there will be excess substances, he believes. In short, there is not one solution, but several at the same time. For example, manufacturers must produce clothes that last longer and consumers must simply buy less.
“In reality, clothing should only be produced to order,” says Scheele, who already sees this happening on a small scale. “But that is labor-intensive and therefore expensive.”
