Kettering MP praises Salvation Army technology tackling ‘alarming’ textile waste
MP for Kettering Rosie Wrighting, has praised the innovation and technology of The Salvation Army’s work in tacking textile waste at centres in the town.
During visits to two of the charity’s processing textile-to-textile recycling centres her first stop was The Salvation Army’s purpose-built processing centre in Kettering Business Park.
The centre is home to the UK’s only automated textile sorting facility known as Fibersort, technology that automatically identifies and sorts second-hand textiles by fibre type – the first step in textile-to-textile recycling.
Ms Wrighting, who is also chair of the all party parliamentary group on ethics and sustainability in fashion, said: “I am really proud that The Salvation Army has chosen Kettering as the place to innovate and pilot new technology that offers the potential to make the fashion industry more sustainable. The volume of textiles waste is alarming and to be able to give unwearable products another life is really exciting for the fashion sector and helps protect our planet.”
The second Kettering facility, Project Re:claim, is located in Cransley Park. It is a new joint venture between Salvation Army Trading Company Ltd (SATCoL) and Project Plan B.
A key part of the project is a polyester recycling machine.
The Processing Centres are operated by SATCoL who also manage over 260 charity shops on behalf of its parent charity.
Trevor Caffull, Managing Director of SATCoL, said: “Reusing and repurposing items remains one of the most positive ways to be environmentally responsible and reduce the volume of textiles going to waste and incineration every year in the UK. This is where charity shops play a vital role in reducing that environmental burden.
"At SATCoL we have invested further in the opportunity to recycle textile waste into future products, and further reducing the burden on our planet’s resources.”
Each year, SATCoL diverts millions of items to good uses, including the reuse and recycling of 67,000 tonnes of textiles – preventing over 453,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere annually.
SATCoL has donated millions of pounds to The Salvation Army to help its work with vulnerable people in the UK – over £100 million has been donated in the last 12 years.