Recycling fashion: The town turning waste into clothes- BBC News

Fashion is one of the most polluting industries in the world. But a small town in Italy called Prato has built its fortune on transforming old scraps into new clothes, particularly knitwear and wool.
Could Prato represent a model for sustainable fashion?
Reporter: Sofia Bettiza
Editor: Sofia Bettiza
Filmed by: Paolo Patruno
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[@p.hearting9992]

Clothing should be recycled this way on a global scale. I hope this is a start to a new wave.

[@keepnatureclean880]

I shared this video. Maybe we can send an email to our politicians, Biden USA, Kurz Austria, Merkel Germany, Putin Russia.....

[@rhianhegarty3383]

@@keepnatureclean880 Boris UK. As far as I knew until today this didn't exist.

[@kalayne6713]

keep nature clean Australia, New Zealand...the list is endless.

[@michelleg5371]

Good idea hey ? 😉

[@jennychuang808]

YES

[@shradhapatnaik3197]

I wish this sort of thing should be included in the Fashion schools course curriculum. It would make such a huge impact on budding designers of the future to be more conscious and sustainable.

[@andreaandrea6716]

@@dollzdreams Wow! Thank you for informing us. I love hearing that this is being talked about.

[@hydraxisfrimon9785]

I volunteer at our local scrapstore and we get lots of fashion students coming in, they all have sustainability built into their courses, it's a central issue for them.

[@tracykennedy4589]

Yes sustainable futures is integrated into the fashion school I teach in and has been for some time...

[@andreaandrea6716]

@@hydraxisfrimon9785 I absolutely LOVE hearing this. Thank you!

[@andreaandrea6716]

@@tracykennedy4589 Wonderful!!!

[@debfryer2437]

As a child in the 50s and 60s in England, I remember the rag and bone man who came round leading a horse drawn cart shouting “rags and bones”. We ran out with old clothes and old household items and he gave us balloons in return. The clothing was shredded and made into duffle coats which most people in the north of England wore in winter. They were very warm hooded coats lined with flannel and closed with wooden toggles.

[@mosart7025]

Did he take bones ever? If so, what did they do with them?

[@debfryer2437]

@@mosart7025 No bones! It was just an expression. I’m guessing it meant any old junk. It was a great way of recycling. We burned all other household trash in the fireplace. For a family of 11 we had a small metal trash can called a dustbin and all it contained was ashes from the fire. There were no plastics in those days so I don’t know where they took trash.

[@OcarinaSapphr-]

@@debfryer2437 Bones could be ground down for many purposes; ‘bone china’- that’s where the name comes from - fertiliser & more...

[@jennyhughes4474]

Yes, me too, but no balloons! In Brighton the local recycling collectors Magpie also collected clothes/shoes & sold them in their shop - also 2nd-hand furniture & other things = fun to go there & see what there was = always stacks of paperbacks at 50p each, I never bought new books - gave & bought to/from the Oxfam bookshops too.

[@kingdomperspectivesmindset5595]

"rag and bone man" Yes I'm a 70's baby and remember my Mum saying 'Give it to the rag and (bow) bone man'😀

[@nitipriyasingh1387]

Recycling is always the last resort... Stop over consuming and start treating your clothes well enough so that they look new till few centuries.

[@mountain85]

true but at least they are doing something instead of just watching or talking !

[@littlejuicebox]

@@ContentConfessional that's true. I wear my clothes for a very long time before letting them go, and buy new ones so rarely. I didn't know people bought new clothes every week! And all my old clothes are given away so I never remember throwing anything away apart from underwear

[@sybelle_esta_no_telhado_ad5040]

You have a point...unfortunately, many clothes yhese days are not even made to last anymore but instead intentionally made to show signs of wear sooner...so that people buy new ones more often. :(

[@renjithravindran5018]

Few centuries 😂

[@fanaliwa7144]

@@ContentConfessional I believe its said to be too much effort to recycle blends of cotton and other plastic type material. Which is all fast fashion uses unfortunately

[@nisheekumari4053]

This method should be taught globally, so that it will help to save our environment.

[@littlesometin]

it should be prescribed globally, so that the giants have to comply

[@petemavus2948]

@@littlesometin yes and not just relocate for avoidance and ever cheaper labor costs.

[@genli5603]

This only works for WOOL. Everything else is destroyed in the carbonization process. Shoddy making was developed in the 1830s from wool. There's nothing exciting except the carbonization allowing blends to be used.

[@nhlombardi6946]

It doesn’t

[@enlilly2405]

First of all reject fast fashion labels. Then encourage regional textile industries.

[@jiamaono8044]

It's not a "rubbish", because it's very costy recycling process, the new recycled wool is an expensive luxury material!

[@claudiaionescu1661]

ROMÂNIA /😍 ✨✨✨✨✨

[@karinamartinez9441]

I would pay twice as much for a recycled item, specially if it can be recycled again! Knowing that less natural resources are being exploited, I think it’s worth it. I just hope every country develops a similar system, and then hopefully new machines are created to waste less time and energy during the recycling process!

[@mazamamina7948]

@@karinamartinez9441 no need to pay a lot, just buy in seconds and theft stores

[@genli5603]

Recycled wool is called shoddy. lol. It comes from a technique developed in the 1830s, and it is cheaper because it's lower quality.

[@patriciajrs46]

​@@mazamamina7948I think you meant thrift stores.

[@RandomHippieCreations]

I stopped buying new clothes 20 years ago... I started buying second hand when I was broke and haven’t stopped. To me there is no reason to buy new.. New baby clothes are asinine, expensive shoes for kids is dumb.. they grow so fast. Make a quilt with your old clothes, make fuzzy blankets out of old sweaters. They’re prettier than anything you could buy.

[@kelliepatrick519]

Me too. I haven't bought new clothes for many years except for a nightgown I HAD to have with it's cool tie-dyed pattern :)

[@elizabethjones8001]

Buying second hand requires the luxury of time to spend a whole day searching 3 or 4 charity shops and come out with one garment. It is quicker to make your own clothes than search for something second hand.

[@debzeb6899]

And masks!

[@donnashreeingti1597]

This method should spread worldwide. Really amazing.

[@leehoward8185]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWfVkJmFl7xsrKM 2

[@genli5603]

Do you wear wool? If not, this is not useful. This destroys other fabric types to recover wool, which is worth more.

[@Megamanthemachine]

I do wish that these could be possible as even the most stuff can be made into useful material that can serve a decent agenda however the travel involved and the resources make it discouraging attempting to make sure even if it’s your own to serve that unique idea.

[@mikem3789]

It would seem they could also make fabric for other uses, furniture, rugs, throw blankets, bed blankets, etc.

[@andreaandrea6716]

Bravo Prato!! THIS is the way of the future! This is the most moving reportage.

[@mentalityofmindset]

I have been thinking of this for a long time. I am so glad my home country has once again taken the lead

[@livetoloveandlaughlivefora6800]

Me too

[@BrownyBird]

I think they have been doing it for years in India 🤔...but the Italian are a bunch that know how to grow in the middle of a crisis anyway 😉. I dress, eat, holiday, food shopping in Italia so I am in with it😘

[@behuman4327]

Yes in India it is done on high quantity.

[@wendyrowland7787]

Actually, we farmers need a market for our wool which doesn’t even pay for the shearer. However, the recycling here is amazing, long may it continue. The clothing is also so very stylish. What else would one expect from Italy!

[@seaglasssparkles6910]

I was wondering about the wool? I suppose there are professionals who know which items of clothing are wool when sorting. Aren’t manmade synthetics used today in most clothing? What happens with cotton clothing?

[@wendyrowland7787]

@@seaglasssparkles6910 not really sure as many textiles are blended. You can tell natural hair fibre by the microscopic scale like construction, it also has a characteristic smell if you burn it, just like the smell of a horses hoof when the farrier applies a hot shoe to the horn. Artificial fibres tend to melt. If my drying machine is anything to go by, I expect the cotton fibres are beaten out of cotton blended fabrics,

[@akakonoha]

There's a market for good value knitting wool (& yarn)? & Yarn is so expensive, (I don't mean acrylic cheap quality, but having said that, sometimes even acrylic yarn is expensive). I generally avoid synthetic fibres but sometimes am tempted if the acrylic is very soft ☺️

[@panda5122]

@seaglass sparkles I think the first thing would be to check for tags. If the tag is still intact it would say what it's made of. After that, I imagine the people who work there are trained to know what to look for.

[@karolinakuc4783]

​@@akakonohaThey can be soft but you should know that chemicals used to achieve such feel are toxic. You should not scrooge on smth as intimate as clothes

[@tw9576]

This is amazing! I pray that all clothes are eventually recycled like this, that this becomes the norm!

[@elyakhudaverdiyeva7420]

👍

[@sphhyn]

I bet this is only possible with natural materials. Sadly a lot of clothes are polyester and similar materials. People should stop buying those. I don’t think they can be recycled. But I would happy to know more

[@liviaclaire]

Yeah, I am trying to buy mostly linen and cotton material clothing. I also have some wool sweaters for the winter.

[@kelliepatrick519]

The synthetics can be upcycled into braided rugs, particularly 'bed rolls' for the homeless.

[@ruidurao2140]

I few years ago I bought a winter jersey made of recycled plastic. I do not wear frequently because I leave in a tropical country but make sure I take it with me when I travel to countries with cold winters.

[@genieareyoudone6982]

Patagonia uses recycled fabrics in its line of clothing.

[@genli5603]

It is only good for wool. Everything else is destroyed in the carbonization step.

[@macarthurdouglas6704]

We should back recycling up

[@VladimirOnOccasion]

this is part of the global reset agenda....rented cloths. :D

[@macarthurdouglas6704]

@@VladimirOnOccasion we should find method but also reflect phenomenon

[@liviaclaire]

@@VladimirOnOccasion rented?! This has nothing to do with any global reset. Producing, using and throwing away does. The clothes are yours when you buy them, only that instead of them rotting in a landfill after you are done with them they are recycled, repurposed and other people can use them.

[@VladimirOnOccasion]

@@liviaclaire rainbow clap...

[@mhey112]

I remember watching videos about fashion wastes so knowing that there are people who are recycling clothes is a big relief for me.

[@asdkotable]

One thing I really miss about my old workplace was that our co-workers would host a clothing swap every year where we'd have a party and exchange some clothes. I always felt happy seeing my fashion regrets find a new owner who actually appreciated them haha

[@salma-kl7ef]

Okay but if I understand it correctly, they're only able to do this with wool, what about all the other materials?

[@judejude8746]

Exactly. I thought the same thing myself but decided to read some of the comments first to see if anyone else commented on the same thing. The video showed all kinds of different materials in piles and most of what they showed was not wool. I don't understand why they did not speak about the other kinds of materials because they were clearly saving and recycling the other materials as well. It is so frustrating when videos leave out so much pertinent information.

[@Cerinaya]

@@judejude8746 I'm wondering if they only reuse wool or if they recycle other materials and they call the finished product wool due to the way it looks when they are done. If it's the fist then hopefully they can find a way to do the same with synthetic fibers and cotton if it's the second then that is a wonderful way to help with recycling clothing.

[@debzeb6899]

And I don't think they are recycling 15 percent of clothing - that can't be right. Still it's useful to show the process.

[@genli5603]

@@Cerinaya They destroy the other fibers in the carbonization process to recover the wool, as wool is worth more.

[@panda5122]

Glad I'm not the only person with this question.

[@oceanofknowledge5754]

Incredible... now this shows humans are moving ahead to save their environment.

[@rhianhegarty3383]

I need to know which charities I can donate clothing to that will be ensured to end up here. I have serious doubt that a people use this service. I love it. What a way to do something. Albeit a small input from us and look at what can be done as a result. Amazing work.

[@genli5603]

This is only for wool. And the main technique was invented by a Scot in the 1800s.

[@user-ml1wj9qf9f]

@@genli5603 thank you for explaining this is only for wool clothing

[@user-ml1wj9qf9f]

@@genli5603the title of the video could be a bit misleading and imply that this process is available for all types of materials

[@dianep9538]

This is amazing. Every country in the world should be doing this. We need to save the planet for our children and grandchildren 🙏🏾

[@danielwhyatt3278]

This is such a great process here.👌🏼 We need more than one of these in every country in the world.

[@langg099]

I agree! otherwise the transport of the old clothes will just create more emissions

[@Waffles84]

Absolutely wonderful. I wish this was done everywhere! How lovely the new fabrics are!!!!

[@elaineforan4751]

This clip has left me with so many questions. At first she spoke about recycled clothing, then she mentioned recycled wool. If the clothing is pure wool recycling it is superb, but it is only a drop in the ocean with the sheer volume of synthetic fibres out there. If the clothing is not pure wool, then the recycled product cannot be called wool either, it would be some type of synthetic blend, which is good, but not wool. What type of clothing is being used and why doesn't every country have several centres like this?

[@feeberizer]

All the thrift stores in my town stopped accepting donations for several months last year due to COVID. I held on to items I wanted to donate, but I'm sure lots of clothing ended up in the landfill instead.

[@JogBird]

the problem are synthetic fabrics, i.e. made from petro, that will never break down and cannot be recycled

[@dennispremoli7950]

polyester can be recycled.

[@livetoloveandlaughlivefora6800]

It can turn into Rugs

[@hettyslooter4533]

I have high fashion clothes that are made of recycled synthetic fiber and plastics! The fashion industrie is slowly moving towards these possibilyties!

[@riadriaz1018]

Hi we are using recycled polyester and recycled cotton as a Go Green initiative,, for our garments

[@jacksonmcnuggets7488]

It can we just need to refine the technology to do so efficiently

[@mellow5123]

This is just excellent. Programs such as this should be shown far and wide. We need a 100% new paradigm for EVERYTHING.

[@denamathews2363]

Amazing, we need more of this!!!

[@lisaperez8276]

I have a brand and have been looking for recycled fabrics. Thank you so much for this report.

[@AuthorBooksReader]

Huge respect for this initiative. Much needed in today's world!!!

[@sisterkaro1635]

Proud of being italian because of this people...they did something that not even the Italian government could do

[@genli5603]

The process was invented by a Scot in the 1830s. Carbonization is the only new step. It's a good location in Italy to use this because it's where the most new wool in Europe is made.

[@riszenjoy-lovesource-power7349]

I created a company in 2008 called earth forward. This was one of our ideas. And still many that the world has yet to organize into daily life. 😎❤

[@stephaniegoncalves5432]

Are you currently doing it now?

[@michallahansen5090]

Everybody should be doing this in the fashion industry around the 🌍 world

[@alwaysluv4ever774]

Wow! Now I understand up-cycle more! Wow. I will be donating every bit of my clothes to goodwill and charity! God bless💚

[@nusaibahibraheem8183]

Seems like only wool will end up here, most will still go to landfill

[@liviaclaire]

@@nusaibahibraheem8183 I think 100% cotton and linen could be recycled, too.

[@violetviolet888]

Look up "zero waste" and you'll find tons of info on upcycling. recycle, re-home, re-purpose, re-use, etc.

[@TA-vu8vh]

A picture, comment are concise and precise brevity clearly in a short time. This's great.

[@shanthageorge8254]

God bless you, Italians for this Industrial Revolution which is the need of this century.

[@emmahardesty4330]

This simple and crucial logic actually brings hope to a lot of us.

[@petemavus2948]

This is absolutely amazing ! We need to bring back all the types of original craftsman that made our countries and integrity sustainable. Bringing this to hopefully global exposure could be the best start. Quite commendable !!!

[@RitaDol23]

I love the idea of recycling clothes. I hope in future all clothes and the most of stuff will be recycled in healthy way for environment. You're doing the right things for the planet

[@moi_seule]

Very interesting. I hope you'll report next on the Chinese sweatshops in Prato where cheap fashion as well as not so cheap one gets the label "Made in Italy".

[@annabarr1304]

I would love to work there sorting, seems so meditative

[@jacksonmcnuggets7488]

Count me in

[@TheCandiceWang]

So true! I get a huge calming tranquility seeing them organize :)

[@thewinner754]

All the workers here are doing such an amazing job ! Doing an important service to the world ! Keep up the good work ! Your work is so important an inspiration for others to follow, try and recycle more old clothes ! Cheers :)

[@shahlahemmati6984]

fantastic!! thank you all of you who are doing this.

[@sambakir6832]

Love it..hope to see more about how new lines in the industry are helping to achieve sustainability

[@htmljaconda]

wow.... In Ukraine where i living we all old textile throw away on garbage dump...But I find upcycle company,who create a traditional rug on 150 years old looms. And now i sending my old clothes them. The name of the company "Vereta".They have website and instagram.Very like design their rugs.

[@violetviolet888]

What is their URL?

[@Lora2788]

I'd like to know how you can ensure your old clothing ends up somewhere like this. Excellent idea which should be used all over the world

[@jacquelinepaddock7535]

In my country this recycled fibre is called shoddy, for years shoddy has been used for blankets etc. This more refined technique certainly gives hope for the future.

[@sweetworld6583]

Same as a India.. mostly indian using rough clothes and making blanket carpet ...this is good for environment..

[@onevoice13]

Ive been thinking about this for 20 years. I'm glad someone was able to make it reality

[@caz7363]

Brilliant stuff - let’s try to do this in almost every country in the world 🌎 - I hate wasting clothing and this procedure is next level and can help save our planet. Can’t wait to purchase some new clothes made from this recycled way.

[@violetviolet888]

Well, the best thing to do is buy clothes at thrift stores/second hand stores, this is less work, and far less resources than everything in the video.

[@kathysemrau2301]

So many great ideas in this short film.

[@hristinatrajkovskatrajkovs74]

This is the most beautiful thing I ever heard. Bravo.

[@SimplisticallyDigital]

This is wonderful! I am always concerned about what happens to my old clothes. I have also stopped buying clothes as much.

[@Isabella-nh5dm]

We need one of these 'plants' here. I must look into emission issues. It would be wonderful to be able to set this up as a profitable mode of recycling!!

[@lindajimmerson8542]

I SO appreciate this recycling effort!!! Thank you for what you’re doing for our planet🤩

[@copperhousefarm4794]

Bravo! This is such an amazing process. Thank you, for your amazing know-how!

[@tinamitchell791]

This time when you color them , the color will be stronger . Threads will be more vibrant . These will have less shrinkage . Thank you .

[@ChenButNotJoongArchen]

I love this! I hope this could happen in many places around the world

[@ronnyshaji2700]

I appreciate... great work ❤️

[@Cyrilmc222004]

Absolutely and utterly incredible. This is really really awesome too. Well done Italy 🇮🇹 for leading the way.

[@cavanaghhalliday1460]

Luv that this is taking place.....So needed.✌

[@dollzdreams]

amazing job guys! true leaders for the fashion industry

[@ju_aych39]

Yay! Gives me hope. Let's do this everywhere.

[@kamiwammy7406]

Never ceases to amaze me how ingenious people are!

[@elisemiller13]

Also heard of some strides in recycling turning old denim into wall insulation & plastics into tiles (with glass)

[@ZumieZumes]

This is amazing!

[@junellencd]

absolutely brilliant

[@ingerloviseeide6806]

That's so good,God bless you and your work.

[@gorgeousdipika2007]

wow it's amazing, every country should own this idea. It can save money, effort time and most importantly our planet earth.

[@dr.lulukdiany5659]

Wonderful, I Wish every country have this kind of factory

[@swastikas.717]

I would love to know which company uses these reusable materials.

[@cecilia1010]

Congratulations!!!! What you are doing is amazing!!!!! This kind of things should be known and imitated around the world.

[@cyberqueen777]

Prato, lead the way and show the world how it's done! You have the answer and the world needs to hear it. Well done!

[@MICHAELT1972]

Bravi!!!! What an incredible initiative and business which is certainly part in saving our planet from drowning and dying under our trash. Love this recycle method!

[@louisegogel7973]

This is wonderful !!! May we be wise in what and how and how much we purchase. May we pass forward what we no longer wish so it gets worn by others, remade into something else, or recycled to become raw material!

[@netexplorers632]

This is really an amazing idea.Recycling of old clothes will be helpful to save our Earth.This method should get global acceptance

[@jennifertrujillo9261]

This is such a cool video. Thank you for sharing.

[@terryholland2526]

This is such a great idea to save the planet. The world needs to definitely do something like this for sure. Love this idea.

[@gurindersingh8109]

Great application of mind, thank you Italy.

[@almalauha]

Recycling is one option, but many fibres are hard to recycle as they are mixed. The best thing is to not buy too many garments in the first place.

[@Ro.Gue.Ish.]

We need more of these around the world

[@pantherwmn70]

This is fantastic! Can l open a similar site in USA? OR How can l collect & send direct to this Italian site?!

[@violetviolet888]

Yes. You can.

[@DavidJohnson-dc8lu]

What we need to do is start shopping less, and demand that there are a lot less cheap clothes on the high street. We need real cotton, not the GMO stuff and for it to be quality made.

[@DrShanSKP]

After the boom of online shopping trend , everyone started to buy clothes unnecessarily every week. So sad that no one knows the bad impact of that on earth. Even this pandemic covid is due to environmental issues like global warming

[@zindhuzanjo8813]

Gmo plants can be modified to absorb more CO2, be pest resistant and produce more quality cotton. Idk why people hate GMOs.

[@kimwarburton8490]

@@zindhuzanjo8813 look into the suicides of the cotton farmers in india thanks to monsanto GMO dont produce seeds, so you get trapped into a debt cycle with monsanto. similar is happening in usa apparently. Re GMO foods, theres less nutrition, more gut issues from consumption n thus more stress on body n thus the increase in chronic conditions

[@zarghonakhan4450]

in old days we bought clothes when our old clothes got too old to be worn n shopped only on special occassion like xmas or birthday or a wedding. we need to stop shopping n de cluttering our closets esp ladies

[@kimwarburton8490]

@@zarghonakhan4450 unless its from bday money, or underwear or swimwear, i only buy clothes from charity shops. shoes usually too. I still have clothes from 20years ago I have textille skills and an overlocking sewing machine and i keep everything incase its ever needed to patch, make quilts etc in a SHTF scenario I made n gave out DIY masks at the start of the pandemic to the local shop staff when everyone was panic buying n no PPE for love or money

[@lisriver1]

Amazing!!! I love what they’re doing! I just can’t wait to visit Prato in Italy 🤩🤩🤩

[@dccg9213]

This is brilliant. I am glad they are doing that. Many other countries should join .

[@ginmonkey4761]

Great stuff 👍

[@whitneyprice2586]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/hmTEm4Bnm7SWZqs 2

[@nataly_jxrs]

wow! that’s a really incredible idea!💡 I hope there will be factories like this in every city in every country soon. Huge respect for these amazing people who work for saving our environment. ❤️

[@viviancovington7813]

This is fabulous. I have been inspected to recycle more of my clothes. Thanks.

[@koushikmaji7998]

Fast fashion is a terminator for environment.

[@laisosa]

this is the fashion that i believe!

[@Keepingupwiththequeens]

I wish I get to visit this when I was doing my Master's in Sustainability. This should be implemented globally!

[@genli5603]

This process only works for wool. Wool isn't used globally, so why should this be implemented globally?

[@anvongocphuc8531]

OMG this is exactly what I'm looking for when cleaning my closet. I hope that they're still developing it 🥰

[@mathipadmadi]

Great idea!

[@shannondilger3479]

This is so awesome!Us crafters and artists reuse old stuff all the time.Its all over Utube.I think we helped to inspire people to do this.Keep it up!

[@SincerelyGail]

I LOVE THIS! Wish more would do the same.

[@armenestrapatey257]

In Yorkshire the farmers are burning the sheepskin wool, because there are no buyers for their product. It's a mad word.

[@elyakhudaverdiyeva7420]

😢

[@FlickyCorn]

In france my exchange family's dad works with insulator out of old clothes :)

[@iixxi4902]

Recycling methods are very effective and useful and also it has an importance in sustainable development . I wish this will be an inspiration for the coming generation and also very effective to fashion industry.

[@elyucanahtv]

the world needs a company like that ✅👍❤️

[@naveenn6235]

Great idea implemented

[@ln14517]

100% cotton and wool is the easiest to recycle. You can even recycle your own cotton shirts at home to make paper crafts.

[@liviaclaire]

I think linen is also a good material that could be recycled easily.

[@RudesMom]

@@liviaclaire Clean natural fibers (linen, cotton, wool, silk) can also be composted. I've heard that linen will compost fairly quickly.