Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 2 hrs ago
Used clothing exports are leaving recipient countries with growing textile waste
Countries receiving used clothing are struggling to manage the waste as large volumes of poor-quality garments are discarded or burned.
Ghana receives about 15 million used garments each week, while India is the largest recipient by total volume, taking 15.4% of the global total.
The European Union is the world’s largest exporter of used textiles, accounting for 33% of exports, and much of the clothing comes from donations and collection schemes.
In Chile, campaigners say containers can be profitable even when only 20% or 30% of the clothes sell, leaving the rest to be dumped or burned.
Spain generates 19 kilograms of textile waste per person each year, and 87% of it ends up in landfill.
Ames and The Or Foundation have launched a campaign to find out how many garments the fashion industry makes.
The campaign says production totals are a basic piece of information that is still not being made public.
The European Union is the world’s largest exporter of used textiles, accounting for 33% of global exports.
Large volumes of low-quality used clothing are becoming waste in recipient countries, where they may be dumped or burned.
India receives the largest share of used clothing exports, at 15.4% of the total.
Ghana receives about 15 million used garments each week, while Guatemala has the highest reported per-capita textile waste intake.
Ames and The Or Foundation have launched a campaign seeking data on how many garments the fashion industry produces.
- Who
- The European Union exports used textiles, and countries including India, Ghana, Chile and Guatemala receive them.
- What
- Used clothing exports are contributing to textile waste in recipient countries.
- When
- The article was published on October 21, 2026. The timeframe for the reported export figures is not stated.
- Where
- Worldwide, including Ghana, India, Malaysia, Kenya, Pakistan, Guatemala and Chile.
- Why
- The article says large quantities and poor garment quality leave recipient countries with more clothing than their second-hand markets can sell or manage.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Second-hand clothing was a driver of development for some local recipient communities, according to Raúl González Miguel.
La Vanguardia published the article reporting on used clothing exports and textile waste.
Ames and The Or Foundation launched the #ContarEstáDeModa campaign to find out how many garments the fashion industry produces.
- EU share of global used-textile exports
- 33%
- India share of used-clothing receipts
- 15.4%
- Ghana weekly used-clothing receipts
- About 15 million garments
- Guatemala textile waste intake
- 7.48 kg per person per year
- Chile textile waste intake
- 5.46 kg per person per year
- Spain textile waste sent to landfill
- 87%
1 source
What people are saying
Before, second-hand clothing was indeed a driver of development for the local communities that received it, but now the large quantity and poor quality of the garments have turned them into waste that they cannot manage and that pollutes their ecosystems
We have made a lot of progress in transparency about materials, emissions or suppliers, but we still do not make public one of the most basic facts: how much we produce
The problem is that selling 20% or 30% of a container is enough to make it profitable to bring it into the country, and what is not sold ends up being dumped or burned, with no transparency about who does it or how