Recycling Textiles in Canada: Challenges and Opportunities

The Canadian textile industry is now in for a period of rapid change. From a world made up of virtually no domestic production and dominated by traditional mills and imports, it is heading toward sustainability, innovation, and tech-driven production.

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From Vancouver to Montreal, businesses are rethinking the movement of textiles from manufacturing and sales to recycling. It’s not just a matter of keeping up with environmental regulations — it's also about remaining competitive in a global marketplace where eco-friendly fabrics are highly sought after.

People in Canada — particularly those in younger generations — want to know what they wear, and that it's sustainable. Meanwhile, local producers are betting big on technology that can cut waste, energy use, and move toward creating smarter fabrics. This is Part 2 of The Great Tech War series. Of all the adversarial relationships that define modern economic life, none is more fraught than that between national security and technological integration. Whether you're a designer or retailer, a student of fashion or simply someone interested in where your clothes come from, these shifts affect you.

Sustainable Practices in Canadian Textile Production

Textile companies in Canada are finding that organic cotton, hemp, bamboo and recycled polyester. These substitutes require less water and fewer chemicals than traditional fibers. Hemp is strong, breathable and locally sourced (several Quebec mills are now offering hemp fabrics). Hemp thrives in Canadian soil and is the perfect sustainable crop. Likewise, suppliers of organic cotton in western Canada are working closely with farmers to cut pesticide use.