The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) will collaborate with Innovate UK, a division of UK Research and Innovation, to invest up to GBP4 million (US$4.7 million) in an innovation project to develop and demonstrate closed-loop recycling for the fashion and textile industry at scale.

This competition aims to provide funding for a research and development activity demonstrator that will showcase new technologies, services, processes, and business models capable of addressing the challenges of recycling and sorting in the UK's fashion and textile sector and their direct supply chains.

The GBP15 million UKRI Circular Fashion Programme, which has been in development for several years with input from the business community and UKFT, has its first project here.

The UK Fashion & Textiles Association (UKFT) said that they’re delighted to see this significant opportunity come to fruition, as it will enable them to close the loop and create further opportunities for the UK fashion, textile, and manufacturing sectors.

Projects must support a demonstration of innovation in recycling and sorting at an industrially relevant scale in the fashion industry that will: boost the percentage of post-consumer clothing and textiles retained in a closed-loop system; boost the market value of processed post-consumer clothing and textiles; lower the percentage of post-consumer clothing and textiles that are disposed of in landfills, destroyed, or exported; and develop and disseminate best practices.

The project must emphasize mixed fabrics as well.