Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia hold significant potential as sourcing bases for clothing made from recycled cotton for Western fashion companies, but there are a number of advancements that will need to be made to make it viable on a larger-scale.

A new study has shed light on the potential of Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia as sourcing bases for clothing made from recycled cotton.

Consumers’ growing demand for sustainable apparel products means fashion companies are increasingly carrying clothing made from recycled textile materials and seeking additional supply bases. Recycled cotton has great potential for use in garments because of the wide availability of cotton-made second-hand clothing and the perceived positive environmental impacts of effectively recycling post-consumption cotton waste.

Why Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia for recycled cotton study?

Asia plays a dominant role as the world’s largest exporter of regular clothing made of virgin fibre, however it may not necessarily be the case for clothing made from recycled cotton, given the unique supply chain composition of such products.

In fact, due to the growing concern about forced labour risks involved in the Asia-based cotton apparel supply chain, fashion companies are eager to diversify their sourcing of cotton apparel in other world regions. Such a pattern also applies to clothing using recycled cotton fibre.

Notably, North African countries, including Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, have a long history of making and exporting cotton and cotton-made finished garments. The “developing country” status and membership in trade agreements or trade preference programmes, such as the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the EU-Mediterranean Association Agreement, allow apparel products from these three countries to enjoy preferential duty benefits in the world’s top import markets. The cotton apparel industry has also played a critical role in driving local economic growth in these three countries. Therefore, it is essential to capitalise on recycled cotton apparel and “green exports” to promote economic development in the region further.

 

 

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Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia apparel market size

Information from leading US and EU fashion companies’ websites showed that Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia have gradually expanded their clothing exports made from recycled cotton since 2022. For example, as estimated, about 1,300 stock keeping units (SKUs) of clothing using recycled cotton from these three countries were newly launched to the US and EU retail markets in 2023, a substantial increase from only 150 SKUs back in 2022 (or a sevenfold increase). Similarly, in the first four months of 2024, clothing using recycled cotton accounted for 10.2% of total cotton apparel from the three countries in the US and EU markets, a substantial increase from only 1.1% in 2022.

From January 2022 to April 2024, Inditex-owned fashion brand Zara appeared to be the single largest retailer that carried clothing using recycled cotton from Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia. Several other well-known brands or retailers, many targeting the value and mass market segments, also sell such products, including Calvin Klein (US), Tommy Hilfiger (US), Mud Jeans (Netherlands), and Spartoo (France). However, it remains relatively less prevalent for smaller to medium-sized companies and those primarily targeting the luxury or premium market segments to carry recycled cotton apparel from these three countries.

Product strategies of clothing made from recycled cotton

To gain additional insights into the strengths and capabilities of Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, we randomly selected about 13,000 SKUs of clothing items made by these three countries that were newly launched to the world retail market between January 2022 and April 2024. About half of the items were made of regular cotton, and the other half explicitly mentioned using “recycled cotton” in the product label or description. A detailed analysis of these products’ assortment information suggests several interesting patterns.

Of the collected samples, apparel using recycled cotton from Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia was destined for as many as 49 countries, reflecting the global demand for such products. However, possibly restrained by the limited supply, the export market for clothing using recycled cotton remained less diverse than that for clothing made of regular cotton, which spanned 72 countries.

Geographically, the European Union (EU) was the top clothing export market for Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, accounting for over 75% of these countries’ export value in 2022, according to UN trade statistics (UNComtrade).

This was also the case for recycled cotton products. Specifically, the EU accounted for 65% of these three countries’ total recycled cotton clothing exports measured in Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) in the collected samples, higher than 59.4% of regular cotton clothing products. The results could be attributed to the unique supply chain and process of making clothing using recycled cotton, making producers in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia more inclined to partner with the EU in production and sales. Additionally, focusing on the EU market may offer Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia producers more advantages in promoting the concept of “local or local” and controlling the costs of collecting, sorting, shipping, and processing textile waste, compared to other more geographically distant markets like the United States and Asia.

The results suggest that Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia focused on different product categories for clothing using recycled cotton than those made from regular cotton. Specifically, of the sampled items, clothing using recycled cotton had a notable concentration on bottoms (52.9%), followed by tops other than T-shirts (23.8%). Recycled cotton clothing also was more commonly used for outerwear (7.5%) than those using regular cotton (3.8%). In comparison, only about 7.9% of clothing using recycled cotton were T-shirts, much fewer than nearly 30% of those using regular cotton. Similarly, specific product categories, such as underwear and hosiery, rarely use recycled cotton. Likely, the concerns for quality and durability and the difficulty of absorbing higher production costs make using recycled cotton for these relatively simple categories more challenging.

Recycled cotton product features

Even though cotton apparel made in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia already commonly mentioned their sustainability attributes (86%), phrases such as “sustainability” and “sustainable” appeared even more frequently in clothing using recycled cotton (94.6%). For example, some producers highlighted that they “worked with suppliers, workers, unions and international organisations” to ensure their recycled cotton clothing contributed to “the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.” Likewise, some labels intentionally remind consumers about the positive environmental impact of using recycled cotton: “The use of recycled cotton helps to limit the consumption of raw materials.” Another added: “The production of recycled cotton recovered cotton, mainly from the production of other garments, thus reducing the production of virgin spring and water consumption, energy and natural resources.”

Meanwhile, compared to clothing using regular cotton, those made with recycled cotton in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia reported much higher participation in certification programmes, such as the Recycled Claim Standard (RCS), which verifies the recycled content and tracks it from source to final product. Notably, a growing number of legislation has been newly adopted in the EU and the US, requiring apparel products containing recycled content to prove the fibre claims. Thus, with the growing call for transparency and accountability in sustainability claims, participating in a certification programme may soon become obligatory for producers asserting the use of recycled cotton fibre in their clothing.

However, reflecting the technical limitations of the fibre property, it remains rare to have clothing that is 100% made from recycled cotton. According to industry experts, longer cotton fibres generally indicate higher quality. Since the recycling process shortens cotton fibres, regular virgin cotton or other fibres like polyester are typically used alongside recycled cotton to make fabrics smoother, stronger, and more durable. For example, common labels include descriptions such as “80% virgin cotton, 20% RCS certified recycled cotton” and “55% RCS certified recycled polyester, 45% RCS certified recycled cotton.”

Pricing of recycled cotton apparel products

Insights from industry practitioners show that clothing made from recycled cotton generally incurs higher production costs than clothing made from virgin cotton fibre. One factor that may contribute to more costly production is the additional process of collecting, sorting, cleaning, and recycling cotton from textile waste. The required investments in specialised recycling equipment and smaller production volumes may also increase production costs.

However, the results show that except for T-shirts, in most cases, clothing made from recycled cotton in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia was priced lower than their equivalent using virgin fibre in the market. This is particularly the case for the premium and luxury market segments, where clothing using recycled fibre typically was 20-30% lower priced than regular clothing. The results echo the findings of numerous studies indicating that consumers are generally unwilling to pay higher prices for recycled fibre clothing as they perceive such products as lower quality and less “valuable.” The results also reveal the business challenges, such as the lack of financial incentives, for producers in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia to expand the production scale and increase the use of recycled cotton in their products.

Overall impact of the study’s findings

The study demonstrates the significant potential of Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia as sourcing bases for clothing made from recycled cotton for Western fashion companies. More efforts could be made to advance techniques to improve the quality of recycled cotton fibre, diversify its use in product categories, reduce production costs, and further increase the added value of clothing using recycled fibre. Additionally, exploring policy support to provide financial incentives for producing, trading, and consuming recycled cotton garments, as opposed to those made from virgin fibres, could further enhance the viability and appeal of recycled cotton in the global fashion market.

By Just Style