Our friends at Laundry and Cleaning Today wanted to hear what insight our technical director Paul Hamilton could offer for the year ahead in the laundry sector. Here’s what he said…
At Regenex our key prediction for 2026 is that the true cost of linen will come into sharper focus. We mean this in terms of money of course, but more importantly, the heavy toll on the earth’s resources.
Before we start to talk about the vast amounts of carbon and water at stake, it makes good financial sense alone for laundries to go easier on ordering top-up stock.
The latest Textile Services Cost Index reveals an increase in the cost of textiles of 1.37% in the past year or 12.28% in three years – an important consideration when new stock comprises 15% of an average laundry’s outgoings.
However, the real benefit on offer via more restrained buying habits is to a laundry’s carbon footprint.
We continue to hear a lot about fast fashion and why consumers should resist the lure of cheap, throwaway clothing. But commercial bedding, towels, workwear and tableware also contribute significantly to the UK textile waste problem, and everyone knows it. It’s not just the likes of Primark and Shein that will be under an uncomfortable spotlight in 2026.
Those consumers moving forward from ‘wear it once’ garments in favour of sustainable, quality wardrobe staples are also choosing holidays and events and favouring eco-friendly operators.
At Regenex we noted the UK Fashion and Textile Association’s newly-published National Textile Recycling Infrastructure Plan considers waste from the fashion, domestic and commercial sectors as a single and hugely problematic entity.
Our industry is now being firmly counted in with fast fashion as a major cause of the UK’s textile waste mountain which, according to UKFT and the University of Leeds, could now be as much as 3,264 kilotonnes per year.
Estimates are that only half of that is clothing – the rest comes from hospitality and healthcare plus the public sector, automotive, agriculture, building and construction.
After two years of research and collaboration, UKFT, the Circular Fashion Innovation Network and partners have made recommendations to herald transition to a robust, circular textile economy by 2035 in the UK.
Noting that 50% of this material goes to landfill, experts are advocating better recycling across the supply chain, including collection and sorting, and a new, £277m national textile recycling hub in the UK, to be fully operational by 2031.
For the Government, tightening up on licensing and environmental compliance standards for those in industry disposing of textiles, and bringing forward Extended Producer Responsibility, are also recommended. Support for emerging circular businesses offering innovative solutions in textile processes is also mentioned – which could be an exciting proposition to Regenex!
In all, it’s great to see some ambitious, big picture thinking. But recycling is not the only answer to the problem.
Let’s also please remember that if we buy less stock and keep it for longer – perhaps with the help of Regenex’s patented textile revival processes – both monetary costs and carbon are minimised.
Ultimately, there is much less to recycle when those bedsheets, pillowcases, napkins, chef trousers or any other item really have come to the end of their current life.