Bursting at the Seams: Ireland’s Textile-Waste Crisis
Our Insights on Kids’ Textile Waste
By Louisamay, Founder of Let’s Match Mums
Ireland is facing a growing environmental emergency: the mounting volume of textile waste. According to RTÉ, Irish consumers purchase more than 50 kg of textiles per person each year, which is more than double the EU average of 19 kg. RTE+1 This translates to roughly 70,000 tonnes of discarded clothing and textiles annually in Ireland. RTE+1
I believe if we are talking textile waste, kids clothes need to be part of the discussion.
183 million pieces of kids clothing go to waste each year,
I was confronted by the scale of the problem when I visited several charity-shop warehouses to see how they dealt with kids’ goods. What I witnessed were mountains of bags, donation racks bursting at the seams, and staff telling me that around 90% of the textiles would be exported across the world to be ground down into carpets.
Here’s a striking kids-clothing fact: In research on household textile waste in Ireland, an estimated 64,000 tonnes of post-consumer textiles come from households every year, and a large share of that is children’s and baby clothing, which are among the fastest-turned-over items. Community Resources Network Ireland+1
Here is the charity shop’s warehouse I visited. All the clothes at the back will be shipped out of the country to places like India be recycled. This part of the warehouse is filled with kids goods that will never be used in Ireland.
What’s going wrong
Several interlinked issues drive this problem:
High consumption levels: As RTÉ reports, the consumption of textiles in Ireland is “really, really extraordinarily high”. RTE+1
Limited reuse & recycling: While the RTÉ piece does not provide precise reuse/recycle percentages, it emphasises the challenge of adequate sorting and processing of textiles in the Irish system. RTE
Over-burdened reuse systems: My visits to charity-warehouses highlighted that even well-intentioned reuse charities are stretched — so much donated kids’ clothing arrives that only a fraction can ever be resold locally.
Infrastructure & policy gaps: RTÉ cites the National Centre for the Circular Economy noting that “Ireland will need more resources to adequately deal with textile waste”. RTE+1
Why this matters for families
As parents, we see it in real time: kids outgrow clothes so quickly. What happens to the hand-me-downs, the near-new jumpers, the tiny jackets barely worn? Many end up donated, but as my warehouse visit showed, donation doesn’t equal reuse. Some of it still ends up being exported or disposed of because local capacity cannot handle it all. That waste isn’t just physical, it’s emotional, financial and environmental.
What Ireland is doing
The EU’s revised Waste Framework Directive requires member states to collect, sort and recycle textiles; RTÉ mentions that Ireland is under pressure to meet this challenge. RTE
Community initiatives like Let’s Match Mums are starting, local councils and charities are arranging swap-events, up-cycling workshops and repair programmes to extend garment life-spans (mentioned in companion articles on the topic).
The National Centre for the Circular Economy emphasises the need for increased resources and systemic change. RTE+1
What families can do
Given the scale of the problem, what can we do as mums and families?
Swap don’t shop: Organise clothing-swaps with friends or community groups so children’s clothes get reused locally rather than donated and lost in the bulk-streams.
Donate thoughtfully: Don’t just give what you’re done with — check condition and usefulness, because charity warehouses are overwhelmed.
Buy less, choose better: With Ireland consuming over 50 kg per person per year, reducing purchase volume makes a big difference.
Extend garment life: Repair, up-cycle, lend to siblings — especially for children’s clothes.
Teach reuse as value: Make it a habit for children to understand that clothes have value, not just until they don’t fit but beyond that.
Why this matters for the future
Ireland’s textile-waste issue isn’t just about disposal, it’s about consumption, culture and systems. The RTÉ article makes clear that addressing this will require both stronger policy and cultural change. RTE For families, being part of that change starts at home: what we buy, what we keep, how we pass things on.
When I walked through those charity-warehouse aisles and saw the bags of kids’ clothes waiting for a fate I couldn’t always trace, it wasn’t just a moment of guilt, it was a call to action.
Let’s match what we believe with what we do, for our children, our wardrobes, and our future.
