Textile EPR

How can extended producer responsibility (EPR) pay for the infrastructure that circular textiles need?

This is the first episode of the Textile EPR series. We talk to Lisa Oelze from Messe München about why textiles has become the most unsettled waste stream in Europe, and Jelica Ramirez from GRS PRO Textil about how extended producer responsibility will work in Germany.

What you'll hear in this episode: • What the EU Waste Framework Directive actually changes for textiles • How a producer responsibility organisation works, and why Germany's competitive model differs from France • What's still undecided in German law, and why brands shouldn't wait for it

The episode also covers why EPR money stays inside Europe while used clothing keeps leaving it.

People Jelica Ramirez,Program Manager at GRS PRO https://www.linkedin.com/in/jelicaramirez/

Lisa Oelze, Business Development Manager Circular Textile, Messe München https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisaoelze/

Patrick Hypscher, Circular Business Strategist, PaaS Expert https://www.linkedin.com/in/hypscher/

Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:44 Meet Lisa Oelze: what IFAT is 3:18 IFAT’s role and the masterclass 5:55 Meet Jelica: GRS PRO 8:27 What textile EPR changes 11:23 Germany’s open questions and competitive PROs 13:28 The race-to-the-bottom risk 15:01 Africa and the cross-border gap 18:41 What brands should do now 20:06 Outro

About GRS PRO is a German environmental-services provider that runs extended producer responsibility systems, especially for batteries and textiles, helping producers meet legal obligations for collection, logistics, and recycling of their products.

IFAT is a global trade fair brand for environmental technologies, with events such as IFAT Munich and other regional editions that bring together companies and experts around water, waste, recycling, and circular-economy solutions.

Further Links IFAT Munich: https://ifat.de/en/trade-fair/ GRS PRO Textil: https://textil.grs-pro.de/ Revised Waste Framework Directive: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/news/revised-waste-framework-directive-enters-force-2025-10-16_en Africa Collect Textiles: https://africacollecttextiles.com/

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