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ESPR Battle Lines Drawn: Europe’s Textile Rules Could Decide The Future Of Circular Fashion

• By  Ellen Macarthur Foundation
• July 28, 2026

The next phase of Europe’s textile revolution will not be decided by information alone. It will be decided by performance.

As the European Union moves closer to introducing the first textile-specific rules under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), industry stakeholders are pushing for stronger mandatory requirements that could reshape how textiles are designed, produced, sold and recycled.

The ESPR is designed to make sustainable products the norm across the EU by reducing environmental impacts throughout a product’s lifecycle. For textiles, one of the most resource-intensive sectors, the regulation could become a turning point, influencing everything from fibre choices and product durability to recycling and market access.

However, experts warn that transparency alone will not transform the textile industry. They argue that Europe needs binding performance standards to ensure circularity becomes a market reality rather than remaining limited to pilot projects.

From labels to real change

The ESPR introduces product-specific requirements through Delegated Acts, which determine the conditions products must meet before entering the EU market. Textiles are among the first sectors expected to come under this framework.

The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has identified four key ecodesign areas for textiles: durability, recyclability, recycled content and environmental footprint.

But the current approach places greater emphasis on information disclosure rather than mandatory performance benchmarks. Industry advocates believe this could limit the regulation’s ability to drive large-scale transformation.

“Information can encourage change, but performance requirements create change at scale,” is the core message emerging from sustainability experts.

Without mandatory thresholds, companies investing in durable, recyclable and circular products could find themselves competing against lower-cost products that do not meet equivalent standards.

Circularity needs scale, not just innovation

The textile industry is witnessing growing investment in recycling, repair, resale and resource-efficient manufacturing. But scaling these solutions requires clear market signals.

A stronger ESPR could unlock significant opportunities across the circular textile ecosystem,  from textile collection and sorting to recycling, repair and refurbishment, creating new business models and employment opportunities.

For manufacturers, the regulation could also provide greater certainty to invest in circular product design and next-generation textile technologies.

What the new rules must deliver

A sustainability-focused white paper on ESPR implementation recommends stronger requirements, including:

• Making durability and robustness mandatory performance criteria instead of only information requirements.
• Strengthening recyclability standards, including stricter limits on materials that hinder recycling, such as high elastane content.
• Prioritising post-consumer fibre-to-fibre recycled content, with targets increasing over time.
• Introducing mandatory product-level repairability requirements in future revisions.

As Europe moves towards a circular textile economy, the ESPR could become one of the most influential regulations shaping global textile supply chains.

The message for the industry is clear: the future of sustainable textiles will not be built only on transparency. It will be built on products that are designed, manufactured and measured for circularity from the beginning.

AMCIRC said circular manufacturing should become a strategic priority, helping reduce dependence on virgin raw materials while supporting responsible sourcing and sustainable production. The move reflects growing efforts to link trade, sustainability and supply chain security. Several textile organisations have also called on USTR to strengthen regional manufacturing and improve the proposed incentive framework. USTR launched the Section 301 investigations in March 2026 and proposed further actions in June. The agency is currently reviewing industry feedback before announcing its final decision. For global textile exporters, the development signals a growing shift, sustainability and traceability could increasingly influence market access alongside cost and quality.