How Recycled Synthetics Harm the Planet

Each American throws away about 80 pounds of clothing per year. Most ends up in landfills or shipped overseas, creating massive waste problems. But the “sustainable” alternatives might not be much better.

Most of us have seen the appealing “eco-friendly” or “made from recycled materials” tags on clothing. They make us feel better about our purchases, giving us the sense we’re making responsible choices. But according to Irys Kornbluth, co-founder of Everywhere Apparel, many of these claims are misleading at best—and actively harmful at worst.

In our recent GreenTech Pulse episode, Irys revealed the uncomfortable truth about the fashion industry’s sustainability claims and explained how her company is building a truly circular clothing system.

The Hidden Problem with “Recycled” Clothing

When you see a garment labeled as “recycled,” what does that actually mean? According to Irys, probably not what you think.

“Most brands will do the bare minimum to be able to greenwash and market something as a sustainable product,” she explains. “A brand’s title will be like ‘recycled hoodie’ but when you look in the product description, it’s 30% recycled cotton, the rest is virgin cotton.”

But the bigger issue is what many “sustainable” clothes are actually made from: recycled plastic.

“Typically, apparel manufacturers blend synthetic fibers like recycled polyester from plastic soda bottles and call it eco-friendly. News flash: it’s not,” Irys says.

These synthetic fibers shed microplastics when washed or even just worn. These tiny plastic particles end up in our water, air, and eventually, our bodies.

“We’re basically eating like a credit card of plastic a week with the amount of microplastics that are in our water,” Irys revealed—a sobering thought for anyone who’s ever felt good about buying a shirt made from recycled bottles.

What Really Happens to Your Donated Clothes

If you’ve been faithfully donating your unwanted clothes to thrift stores, assuming they’ll find new homes, the reality might shock you:

“Thrift stores only resell 60% of the clothes they receive because they receive a lot of clothes that are not in wearable condition,” Irys explains.

What happens to the rest? Much of it is sold in bulk to textile brokers who ship it overseas to countries like Ghana in West Africa, where it often creates massive waste problems.

“A lot of them they send are not resellable, and then they try to trash them and most time they try to trash them by the sea or something, and then it’s piled up and causing its own problem there,” notes Peter Banigo, host of GreenTech Pulse.

In other words, our “out of sight, out of mind” approach to clothing disposal is creating environmental crises elsewhere.

The Circular Solution: How Everywhere Apparel Is Different

Everywhere Apparel tackles the problem differently by creating a truly circular system:

1. They collect textile waste from manufacturing processes, unsold inventory, and post-consumer clothing
2. They remove non-recyclable elements like screen printing, buttons, and zippers
3. They separate materials, focusing only on 100% cotton (no synthetic blends)
4. They shred and process the cotton into new yarn
5. They create new garments that come with QR codes so consumers can easily send them back for recycling when they’re done

“In a circular model, what we’re trying to do is reclaim products at end of use and really look at them, evaluate them, and see how we can use them as raw material inputs in the same supply chain,” Irys explains.

This approach creates clothing that, when no longer needed, becomes the raw material for the next generation of garments rather than waste.

How to Spot Genuine Sustainable Fashion

With greenwashing rampant in the industry, how can consumers make truly better choices? Irys offers several practical tips:

Look for specific certifications:

• Global Recycled Standard
• Recycled Content Standard
• GOTS certification (for organic cotton)
• Fair Trade certification (for labor conditions)

Check the material content:

“Clothing that is made of one material is way more recyclable than a blended material,” Irys advises. “100% cotton garment is much easier to recycle, and 100% polyester is much easier to recycle than a blend.”

Be skeptical of vague claims:

Terms like “eco-friendly” have no standard definition and are often meaningless.

Research the brand:

“If the brand is more transparent, they’re talking more about their supply chain, sharing content on their supply chain… the brands are willing to talk with their consumers and learn from their consumers.”

The Future of Sustainable Fashion

Despite the current challenges, Irys sees several positive trends emerging:

New regulations: California has implemented a law requiring brands and manufacturers to pay fees to cover textile waste processing, creating financial incentives for recycling.

Changing consumer preferences: Younger consumers, particularly Gen Z, are demanding true sustainability and researching brands thoroughly.

Technological innovations: Companies are working on better ways to sort, process, and strengthen recycled fibers, potentially making infinite recycling possible in the future.

What You Can Do Today

Ready to make better choices? Irys suggests these practical steps:

1. Get more use from what you already own: “Look at what you have. If there are creative things to rewear, reuse what you already have, that’s to me the best starting point.”
2. Consider resale before donation: “Maybe look beyond just donating it to a thrift store. Maybe look at resale platforms first, like can you post it on Depop or eBay.”
3. Look for direct recycling options: “Can you work directly with a recycler? Companies like ours, we actually have a mailer on our website that you can get and just put clothing in it and send it back to us.”
4. Read labels carefully: Check for mono-materials (100% cotton, 100% wool, etc.) rather than blends.
5. Support truly circular brands: Look for companies that take responsibility for their products’ entire lifecycle.

The fashion industry’s environmental impact is massive, but by making more informed choices, we can reduce our personal contribution to the problem and support companies building better systems.

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Listen to the full conversation with Irys Kornbluth on [your preferred podcast platform] or watch the video on our YouTube channel.