IKEA puts together pilot textile recycling scheme

IKEA Cardiff is piloting a new scheme to repair, reuse and recycle the local community’s unwanted textile products. In partnership with charity YMCA, customers will be able to bring anything from old clothing […]

IKEA Cardiff is piloting a new scheme to repair, reuse and recycle the local community’s unwanted textile products.

In partnership with charity YMCA, customers will be able to bring anything from old clothing to soft furnishings to the store for the retailer to donate to the local community, including low-income families, charity shops and the homeless.

IKEA also plans to run a series of workshops at the store in Roath, showing customers how they can repair old fabrics or turn them into something new.

Each year, the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) estimates the UK consumes 1.7 million tonnes of textiles, with almost a third of this ending up in landfill sites or being incinerated.

Matthew Fessey, Store Manager at IKEA Cardiff, said: “With our vision to create a better everyday life for the many people, the textile take-back scheme in Cardiff will help our customers to live more sustainably while supporting people in need who are living in the local community.

“We also want to allow our customers to upcycle their unwanted goods instead of throwing them away, minimising the contribution to landfill.”

If rolled out across the country, the scheme would join IKEA’s existing services to recover and recycle sofas, batteries and light bulbs.

Plastic bottles, fishing nets, carpets and bamboo have been used to create sustainable sportswear.

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