Adidas, H&M Group, Inditex, and Bestseller have announced the formation of the Apparel Recovery Coalition, aimed at reducing textile waste and promoting circularity in collaboration with Ghana-based nonprofit The Or Foundation. The coalition was launched last week at Kantamanto Market in Accra, Ghana, a major hub for sustainable fashion practices such as reuse and recycling.
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The coalition intends to explore producer responsibility systems, where brands are accountable for their products' lifecycle after consumer use. This includes promoting methods like reuse, recycling, and upcycling, and implementing effective waste management strategies in countries that import large amounts of secondhand clothing.
During its two-year initiative, the Apparel Recovery Coalition plans to develop and test a business model reflecting global textile flows. According to a September 29 press release, it aims to engage brands, recyclers, policymakers, and affected communities to devise practical solutions.
Kantamanto Market recirculates approximately 25 million garments monthly, making it a critical location for understanding the impacts of post-consumer textiles, including environmental and social ramifications. One of the coalition's objectives is to adopt more inclusive governance and design approaches by incorporating community insights into its goals.
The coalition, which also receives support from the nonprofit Circle Economy, seeks to enhance the efforts of The Or Foundation, which has been developing Ghana's circular textile system for over 15 years, focusing on environmental justice and sustainable fashion.
The first demonstration project will be based in Accra, aiming for infrastructure improvements, environmental remediation, and training programs. Additionally, a second project is planned in another country known for receiving significant volumes of secondhand clothing. Participating brands will provide voluntary financial contributions to support these initiatives.
The coalition aims to generate evidence and practical insights from these demonstration projects to guide brands, policymakers, and producer responsibility organizations in improving global textile waste management systems. This initiative comes amid increasing scrutiny on the environmental impact of the fashion industry; for instance, Inditex reported using 705,554 metric tons of raw materials in 2025, a rise from 678,596 metric tons in 2024. H&M's recent sustainability report highlighted the production of 364,093 metric tons of products, equivalent to the weight of 36 Eiffel Towers.