This might be the boldest move sustainable fashion has seen yet. The textile recycling industry is about to experience a pivotal shift as Circ, the pioneering U.S.-based textile-to-textile recycling company, announces plans to build a $500 million recycling facility in France. This development signals a significant investment in sustainable fashion technology and could become the turning point the industry needs to address one of its most pressing environmental challenges.
A Game-Changing Industrial Scale Solution
The announcement, made by the French government in May 2025, reveals that Circ’s new plant will be located in Saint-Avold in northeastern France and is expected to process a substantial volume of textile waste annually once operational in 2028. What makes this facility particularly groundbreaking is its position as the world’s first industrial-scale polycotton recycling plant.
Peter Majeranowski, Chief Executive of Circ, said: “This will be the world’s first industrial scale polycotton (recycling plant), Now, most of the clothing produced is a blend of polyester and cotton, and that makes it very difficult to recycle, so having this facility is a major landmark milestone.”
The importance of this breakthrough cannot be overstated. Polycotton blends make up the majority of clothing produced worldwide, yet they have remained among the most challenging materials to recycle efficiently. Circ’s proprietary technology addresses this challenge directly by using a hydrothermal process that can break down polyester without damaging cotton fibers, allowing both materials to be recovered and reused in a single process.
Strategic Partnerships and Financial Backing
This ambitious project follows Circ’s recent funding round completed in March 2025, led by Taranis through its Carbon Ventures fund, with continued support from strategic investors including Inditex and Avery Dennison. The funding for the French plant will come from a combination of equity and loans, with plans to pursue grants and guarantees, including the Strategic Projects Guarantee from the French government.
The facility represents more than just a financial investment; it’s a collaborative effort that brings together engineering expertise and operational know-how. Taranis, owned by the Perenco Group, brings deep experience in developing and operating large industrial projects, while ANDRITZ has received an engineering order to help commercialize Circ’s innovative recycling process.
Conor Hartman, Chief Operating Officer at Circ, said: “We remain excited about this continued collaboration with ANDRITZ. Together, we will commercialize Circ’s innovative recycling process and take another step towards a truly circular fashion industry.”
Environmental Impact and Industry Transformation
The environmental implications of this facility are significant. “This facility will be a game-changer,” said Nicole Rycroft, Canopy’s Founder and Executive Director. “For decades, fashion has been locked into a take-make-waste model — fuelling pollution, forest degradation, and climate instability. Circ’s new mill flips that script: transforming worn-out clothes into new textiles, reducing reliance on both forests and fossil fuels, and proving that the future of fashion is circular, low-carbon, and here. This will be a game-changer.”
The facility is expected to create 200 jobs and will help address the massive scale of textile waste. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, the fashion industry is responsible for up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions and uses more energy than the aviation and shipping industries combined. With millions of tonnes of textiles wasted annually in Europe alone, Circ’s technology offers a crucial solution to this growing environmental problem.
Proven Technology with Brand Partnerships
Circ’s technology has already shown its effectiveness through successful collaborations with major fashion brands. The company has worked with Zara since 2022, launching multiple collections featuring garments made from recycled polycotton textile waste. “For us, success is when circularity is the default, with no compromise on quality or design,” said Peter Majeranowski, CEO of Circ. “Our latest collection with Zara builds on our goal of creating a model for widespread adoption of sustainable materials. This partnership also reinforces the long-term potential of Circ and Inditex to work together to improve product circularity for the fashion industry, while demonstrating Circ’s product quality.”
Looking Toward a Circular Future
As the fashion industry faces increasing pressure to adopt sustainable practices and comply with stricter environmental regulations, Circ’s French facility offers a scalable solution that could be replicated globally. Majeranowski noted strong international interest, “We have a lot of interest from all over the world, from South Asia, East Asia, in the States, of course, Canada, Australia,” he said.
This landmark facility in France is not just about processing textile waste—it’s about fundamentally changing how the fashion industry approaches the lifecycle of clothing, moving from a linear take-make-dispose model to a truly circular economy where garments can be continuously recycled and repurposed.