K Group workwear is recycled into fiber
Discarded workwear is now recycled into new textile raw material at K Group. In circular economy cooperation with Touchpoint and Rester, workwear is recycled into fiber, for which the K-Group is currently looking for further uses in its own operations. An outfit seen on a K-store salesperson can end up as raw material for a home decoration product or a new garment, for example. The amount of workwear consumed is considerable, as more than 20,000 employees work in the participating stores.
Workwear, which can withstand heavy wear and tear, reaches the end of its useful life when it wears out or breaks. Such discarded workwear can now be recycled in a joint model between K Group, Touchpoint and Rester. Discarded workwear from K-food stores, Neste K transport stations, K-Rauta stores in Finland and Onninen Express stores serving corporate customers will be recycled into fiber at Rester's textile recycling plant in Paimio, Finland.
The circular economy is a strategic choice for K Group and one of the cornerstones of its sustainability work. With the new cooperation model, the textile waste can be recycled and no longer ends up in mixed waste for incineration. The new waste legislation has also led to a search for solutions for the collection and recovery of waste textiles.
"The transition to a circular economy requires an increasingly efficient circulation of materials and close cooperation between companies to create new solutions. We are delighted that we can make a concrete contribution to the Finnish circular economy through textile recycling. K-retailers have also been calling for a centralised model for textile collection, so it is great that we can make this possible through this cooperation. We are currently planning what kind of further use the textile fibers generated could have in our own operations," says Timo Jäske, Kesko's Vice President for Sustainability in the grocery trade.
K Group's return transport between the stores and the central warehouse is used to collect the worn-out clothes. Discarded work jackets, shirts and trousers are loaded clean onto K Group's normal return logistics vehicles. The textiles are delivered to the Paimio textile recycling plant, where they are processed back into fibers. The first loads of textiles from the stores will be sent to the recycling plant during October.
Recycled fibre has many uses
Rester's textile recycling plant in Paimio is unique in Europe and offers the largest capacity for recycling business textiles in Northern Europe. The mechanical fiber opening process at the plant is a method that can be applied not only to workwear but also to a wide range of other materials and textiles.
"The EU aims that by 2030, all textile products sold in the EU internal market should be sustainable, repairable and recyclable, and made largely from recycled fibres. Closed-loop recycling of textile fibers and the reuse of material flows back into new workwear is a goal for us as well as for the whole textile industry. Partnerships are important, because the circular economy cannot be achieved by one person alone," says Anna-Kaisa Huttunen, Director of Partnerships at Rester.
Together with Rester, Touchpoint is responsible for the statutory recycling of waste textiles into new raw materials for industry. Recycled textile fibers have many potential uses.
"High-quality workwear materials can be used to produce good quality recycled fiber, which can be used as raw material for knitwear and new workwear fabrics, for example. Cooperation with K Group has brought the recycling of discarded textiles closer to the closed loop of the circular economy, and good things are already happening," says Joni Mäenpää, Sales Director at Touchpoint.
"In addition to fibers suitable for the textile industry, we are also looking for other, innovative solutions for various interior design and construction products," adds Resterin Huttunen.
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