Emmaüs and the Secours populaire de Figeac overwhelmed by textile donations

For several years, almost everywhere in France, the textile collection sector has been saturated. The fault lies in a change in consumption patterns, but also and above all in the difficulties of sorting and exporting these clothes, as our colleagues at The Dispatch.

This is the case at Emmaüs and at the Secours populaire in Figeac (Lot) where textile donations continue to increase and are sometimes unusable due to poor quality.

A stop to textile donations?

A situation such as clothing donations could soon be refused, at least until the situation is under control. According to the president of the Friends of Emmaüs committee in Figeac, this saturation problem comes from changes in habits regarding recycling and waste management, but also from the blockage of the export sector in Africa.

Indeed, once donations have been made by individuals, Emmaüs and Secours populaire sort the clothes in order to only keep what is in good enough condition to be re-proposed. The rest is sent to a specialized platform which carries out a new sorting in order to determine what can be exported, particularly to Africa.