This question was investigated by a team from the Berlin research and consulting institute adelphi and the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ). In their study "Circular Economy in the Textile Sector", published at the end of March, they examined the options for establishing closed fibre cycles in the clothing and fashion industry. The authors analyzed how the process stages of textile production and processing can be transformed from a linear process into a closed loop economy. In addition, they identified the main drivers and obstacles and evaluated selected technologies for recycling.

For the study, more than 20 experts were interviewed by the authors, who also evaluated the results of an international symposium held during the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) Congress 2018. The study was commissioned by the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) and financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).