% of EU second-hand clothing exported to Africa is not recycled

Swiss media Africa Finance News reported on May 25, 2023 that the European Environment Agency recently released a report entitled “Second-hand clothing exports in the European circular economy”, pointing out that the EU’s second-hand clothing exports It has continued to increase, from 550,000 tons in 2000 to 1.7 million tons in 2019, mainly sold to Africa, Asia and other regions. About 40% of second-hand clothing sold to Africa has not been recycled and is directly abandoned in open dumps or informal garbage recycling stations, causing pollution to the local environment. Most of the second-hand clothing sold to Asia is processed into industrial rags, fillers and other products in economic zones, and is even transformed into other clothing for export to Africa. According to reports, the main import sources of second-hand clothing in Africa in 2021 are China (US$624 million), the European Union (US$572 million), the United Kingdom (US$158 million), and the United States (US$66 million).