The report’s sensitivity analysis found that switching to a renewable energy mix can “substantially reduce” climate impact, while reliance on coal-intensive grids can significantly increase impact.
The LCA was released in response to persistent gaps in environmental data on polyester, the world’s most widely used fibre.
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Textile Exchange and SCS said existing publicly available datasets have been limited for thermomechanical and chemical polyester recycling, and for virgin polyester production in Asia, which produces over half of the world’s polyester.
Inspired by an earlier SCS study conducted for the UN Fashion Industry Charter that highlighted these gaps, the new work provides updated data intended to improve LCA reliability for both virgin and recycled polyester pathways.
The research provides new publicly available data on virgin polyester produced in Southeast Asia and recycled polyester production in China, Europe, and the US. It also reports the first known publicly available primary data on virgin polyethene terephthalate (PET) production in Asia, covering melt, chip, and staple fibre from Southeast Asia.
Textile Exchange chief impact officer Beth Jensen said: “We are pleased to have worked with SCS Consulting Services on this LCA study, which marks a significant update to existing polyester LCA data and advances our understanding of the impacts of its production for the fashion, textile, and apparel industry. By addressing known data gaps across both virgin and recycled polyester, and by identifying major hotspot impact areas, these findings create a stronger foundation for making informed decisions that support the shift toward preferred production systems.”
Additional findings from the research:
- No single recycling method is a fix-all: Thermomechanical recycling is usually less resource-intensive but needs clean, high-quality inputs. Chemical recycling can handle more complex waste but is more energy- and chemical-intensive. The study says scaling circularity will require multiple approaches.
- Post-consumer recycling is limited by sorting: The report points to the need for better sorting and preprocessing across the value chain. It notes commercial-scale chemical recycling is still focused mainly on post-industrial waste due to post-consumer sorting and logistics challenges.
- Transport matters: Collection distances for textile waste can meaningfully affect overall environmental performance, making local sourcing a practical way to reduce impacts.
- New public data fills key gaps: The study provides the first known publicly available LCA data on virgin PET production (melt, chip, and staple fibre) from Southeast Asia.
The research was conducted in accordance with ISO 14044 standards and follows the requirements of the Higg Materials Sustainability Index.
Primary data was collected from seven facilities between 2022 and 2024, including three chemical recycling operations, three thermomechanical recycling operations, and one virgin PET producer.
