A guide to preventing contamination in the collection of used textile products

In July 2019, an action plan to promote the separation and recycling of organic waste and used textiles was published. The plan is part of the VANG Householde Waste Implementation Programme. VANG stands for Van Afval Naar Grondstof (From Waste to Resource).  
One element of the action plan is a series of pilot projects specifically designed to improve the quality of used textiles and textile waste. The aim of the projects is to generate information and data in the chain that can be used to learn more about the types of contamination found in waste textiles and how to address them. In this way, municipalities and waste collectors will know where the hotspots are and what causes the contamination and will be able to target measures at the necessary improvements. An important step is to reduce the contamination and the moisture in the waste textiles that are collected. The cleaner the used textiles are, the more marketable the products are for reuse or recycling.