In the Ludwigslust-Parchim district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, used clothing recycling is becoming a major burden for local sanitation authorities. Steffen Grünwaldt, CEO of the district's waste management company (ALP), recently stated that since early 2024, the economic conditions for recycling used textiles have deteriorated sharply—revenue from sales that once covered costs is now far from sufficient, and the international second-hand clothing market is also facing collapse.

Grünwaldt pointed out that the quality of collected used clothing has declined noticeably in recent years, because large quantities of low-priced new clothes are entering countries that traditionally receive second-hand clothing, and these former buyers are now turning to cheaper new garments. At the same time, economic conditions continued to worsen in 2025 and 2026, causing nearly all charitable and commercial recycling organizations to withdraw the used clothing collection bins placed in public spaces.

Although the number of street-side used clothing containers has decreased, under Germany's Circular Economy Act, local governments are still obligated to maintain a separate collection system for used textiles. Since 2022, ALP has provided free used clothing collection services at 15 recycling stations across the district. Residents in this area can drop off used clothing free of charge, including still-good coats, underwear (the original listed other accessories, etc.), shoes (recommended to be tied in pairs), etc., all of which should be clean, dry, and packaged. Obviously damaged or heavily soiled clothing should be disposed of as household waste, though this distinction frequently causes disputes at recycling stations.

What seems like ordinary used clothing disposal has a considerable impact on the local budget—ALP commissions a company to collect and utilize these used clothes, and the current cost has reached the mid-five-figure euro range, with no end in sight in the short term. Grünwaldt mentioned that there are limits to how much can be done internally to raise people's awareness of proper disposal; the best approach would be the complete disappearance of container sites, as roadside dumping outside legal bins has left the responsible authorities scratching their heads. Looking further ahead, whether the EU will extend producer responsibility to rescue the current situation remains unknown; in his view, even if Germany finalizes producer responsibility allocation, it may not take effect until 2027 at the earliest or even later. The outlook is not optimistic, and they can only hope that reasonable regulatory management and long-term planning will ease the deadlock.

Source: Altkleider sind für die Entsorger in der Region ein Problem · Originally published on 2026-09-02