The Dutch-German border region has a long and rich textile history, evolving from small-scale cottage industries in the 16th century to major industrial production in the 19th century. Today, however, most textile production has shifted to low-wage countries, while fast fashion has turned the sector into one of the most polluting industries worldwide. At the same time, new European legislation is driving the transition towards a circular textile economy, requiring producers to use increasing amounts of recycled materials.
A major challenge remains: there is currently no objective and independent way to verify how much recycled material is actually used in textile products. This makes it difficult to enforce regulations, enables greenwashing, and puts genuinely sustainable companies at a disadvantage.
To address this challenge, the FiberFact project aims to develop innovative analytical technologies to measure recycled content in textiles. A cross-border consortium of universities of applied sciences, industry partners, and a trade association from the Dutch-German border region is working together to create methods that can determine the percentage of recycled fibres in a textile and their origin – whether pre- or post-consumer, and whether derived from closed-loop or open-loop recycling. Advanced data analysis, supported by artificial intelligence, is used for the automated interpretation of measurement results.
The goal is to integrate the developed technologies into a pilot device, which will be tested on real textile products from industry partners. In parallel, the project will develop a roadmap for market implementation and align with policymakers to ensure practical application and regulatory impact.
By making recycled content measurable and verifiable, FiberFact contributes to reliable certification, strengthens sustainable SMEs, and promotes a transparent and circular textile economy. In doing so, the project positions the Dutch-German border region as a leading hub for green textile innovation.
