Journal article
Replacement rates for second-hand clothing and household textiles – A survey study from Malawi, Mozambique and Angola
Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark1
Air, Land & Water Resources, Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark2
Humana People to People3
Residual Resource Engineering, Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark4
The growing collection of used textiles has increased the demand for more knowledge about current handling and treatment, in order to facilitate improvements of textile waste management systems. A key question is whether second-hand textiles actually replace new items, and it is of particular importance in order to assess the environmental impact of textile handling and treatment.
This study determined the replacement rate through face-to-face questionnaire surveys conducted in Angola, Malawi and Mozambique. In total, 3485 respondents and 14,190 purchased second-hand textile items formed the basis for determining replacement rates, namely 63 ± 6% in Angola, 35 ± 1% in Malawi and 37 ± 5% for Mozambique, and according to a set of main categories (clothing, household textiles and other textile products) and product types.
The rates varied between product types, but the relatively low replacement rates were surprising and possibly caused by the respondents' limited purchasing power, i.e. that buying new textile items was not an option. This was supported by several findings, such as respondents’ wardrobes consisting largely of second-hand clothes and the purchase of second-hand items to upgrade or to replace damaged items.
Language: | English |
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Year: | 2019 |
Pages: | 1026-1036 |
ISSN: | 18791786 and 09596526 |
Types: | Journal article |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.177 |
ORCIDs: | Nørup, Nynne , Damgaard, Anders and Scheutz, Charlotte |
Current handling Environmental Impact and Protection Environmental impact Face-to-face interview Face-to-face interviews Household textiles Industrial Wastes Treatment National differences Purchasing Purchasing power Questionnaire surveys Replacement rates Sales Second-hand textiles Surveys Synthetic and Natural Fibers; Textile Technology Textiles Waste management systems Waste treatment