Unsold goods: EU bans their destruction, imposing a new model on fashion

A practice long considered a necessary evil in industrial fashion will become illegal from July 19. The EU will prohibit large companies from destroying their unsold clothing, footwear and accessories, ending the annual incineration and landfilling of millions of new items.

Enshrined in the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), this measure marks a major regulatory tightening for a sector already under environmental and economic pressure. Beyond the ecological impact, Brussels seeks to correct the excesses of a model based on overproduction and mass returns. Destruction has been used as a way to manage stock levels. This will have direct consequences for the strategy, costs and transparency of fashion players operating in Europe, reports EcoTextile News.

Progressive extension to medium-sized companies

The regulation does not stop at large groups. From 2030, medium-sized companies will also be affected by the ban on destruction. However, they will still benefit from certain targeted exemptions, Brussels specifies.

The same deadline will mark a tightening of transparency obligations. Medium-sized companies will have to publish detailed information on the unsold consumer goods they dispose of, a requirement already in force for large companies. The objective is clear. It is to make a hitherto largely opaque phenomenon visible and to strengthen the accountability of economic players.

Reuse, resale, donation: an imposed model change

Beyond the ban, the European Commission seeks to structurally change stock management in fashion. The new rules explicitly encourage companies to prioritise alternatives to destruction, such as:

resale,
reconditioning,
donation,
or reuse of unsold products.

According to the European executive, this approach should encourage brands to better anticipate demand; optimise the handling of returns, a key challenge in e-commerce; and promote circular business models. It also aims to restore fair competition between companies that have already invested in sustainable strategies and those that have so far externalised the environmental cost of their surpluses.

Massive environmental challenge

The reform comes in a context deemed critical by Brussels. According to European Commission estimates, between 4 percent and 9 percent of unsold textiles in Europe are destroyed each year before they have even been worn. This practice represents approximately 5.6 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year, a volume close to Sweden's total net emissions in 2021.

E-commerce appears to be one of the system's weak points. As highlighted by FashionUnited's German editorial team, the e-commerce sector in Germany alone destroys nearly 20 million returned items each year. This illustrates the scale of the logistical and environmental problem linked to free return policies.

Growing regulatory pressure on European fashion

For fashion players, this ban marks a regulatory turning point. The destruction of unsold goods was long tolerated for reasons of cost, brand image or protection against the grey market. It now becomes a legal and reputational risk.

By imposing these rules via the ESPR, the European Union confirms its desire to make sustainability a structural pillar of the textile industry, rather than a simple voluntary commitment. For brands, managing unsold goods is becoming an issue at the crossroads of profitability, regulatory compliance and environmental credibility.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

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