LAVAL - France's Renaissance Textile has successfully started up a complete textile recycling line from Andritz Laroche.

The investment from Renaissance Textile makes it the first French recycling platform dedicated to industrial end-of-life textiles with the project producing new fibres from the collected post-consumer apparel, which will be used to weave new recycled fabrics.

The new 12,000 m² plant is equipped with a complete tearing line whose unique design is the result of close collaboration between R&D specialists from Andritz Laroche and Renaissance Textile, as well as customized trials carried out jointly by the two parties at the Andritz technical center in Cours, France.

According to to Renaissance, the new clothing produced based on this type of circular economy model reflects the social and sustainability commitments of the company in terms of decarbonizing the textile industry, the fight against global warming, autonomy in raw material sourcing, and promotion of local staffing, particularly for people who have been unemployed for a long time or are seeking to enter the labor market for the first time. By 2025, for example, Renaissance Textile plans to create no less than 110 direct jobs.

“Our first recycling line is dedicated to white polycotton textiles that mainly come from the healthcare and food processing industries," said Nicolas Nojac, director of Renaissance Textile. "This equipment enables us to recycle 3,000 tons of textiles every year, representing 10 million items of clothing. We also plan to install two additional lines by the end of 2023 and 2025, respectively, to enlarge the range of recycled textiles by adding different colours and fibres.”