In more detail
The European Union's Textile Strategy 2030 has set a clear objective: the durability and recyclability of textile products and the responsibility of companies in the waste management of these products. This objective has materialized in Spain through Law 7/2022, of 8 April, on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy ("Wastes Law"), which imposes the regulatory development of the extended producer responsibility (EPR) regime to be applied to textile products within three years of the Wastes Law entering into force, i.e., in April 2025.
In general, the EPR is a regulation that extends the producer's financial and/or operational responsibility for a product to include the management of the pre- and post-consumer stage. In this case, the EPR established by the Wastes Law consists of a series of obligations aimed at ensuring that the textile product producer designs its products in a more sustainable way and bears all of the costs in relation to textile waste management.
These obligations will have a decisive impact on the entire supply chain and the business model of the producers, since they affect aspects from the design of the textile product to the management of the final waste. Likewise, compliance with part of these obligations may be carried out either individually or collectively with other companies in the sector through the constitution or adhesion to an EPR system (also known by its Spanish acronym, SCRAP).
In this regard, it is important for companies to pay attention to two fundamental aspects: (i) whether they can be considered "textile product producers" according to the Wastes Law; and (ii) if so, the obligations deriving from the EPR regime.
Although the Wastes Law already establishes the main obligations deriving from this EPR, we will not know exactly how this regime will be regulated for textile waste until its regulatory development next year.
Finally, despite the pending regulatory development, many companies in the textile sector have already begun to voluntarily set up the first SCRAPs, thus getting a head start in complying with the future obligations that will be imposed on textile waste product producers and benefiting from the high reputational value of this action.
For more information or if you need individual advice for your company, please contact our team of experts.
