H&M Group and Ikea join to study recycled materials

The H&M Group and furniture giant Ikea have joined together to conduct a large-scale study of recycled textiles, as the companies announced at the 2019 Textile Exchange Sustainability Conference.

The two companies are currently reviewing chemical content in post-consumer textile recycling in a study that has been underway since May 2018.

H&M has been working towards a goal of increasing its use of recycled materials to become more circular, and therefore has an interest in understanding the chemical content of collected pre-owned textiles to ensure safe use of recycled materials.

“Recycled materials are key elements in a circular economy. However, increasing the use of recycled materials whilst ensuring that we keep these textiles free of toxic chemicals presents a challenge for the industry," H&M's global business expert on materials Anna Biverstål said in a statement.

The H&M Group and Ikea have already conducted 8,000 tests on collected recyclable textiles, initially focusing on post-consumer cotton. Polyester and wool rich post-consumer textiles will be included as the study progresses.

The two parties aim to use their findings to develop an action plan for the use of recycled textiles, which will meet strict safety standards.

Image: H&M Group Newsroom