Growing shortfalls in the textile value chain 2025–2026
17 June 2026 – The results of the 2024 Cost Price Study, together with the supplement for 2025 and 2026, were discussed with the sector organisations NVRD, BKN and VHT during the Textiel Keten Overleg. The findings provide insight into the financial situation within the textile value chain and show that net shortfalls in textile collection and sorting are expected to increase further in 2025 and 2026. In addition, the evaluation of this first large-scale Cost Price Study has generated valuable insights and identified several areas for improvement.
Supplement Cost Price Study & Fees 2026
The 2024 Cost Price Study mapped the costs and revenues of the textile waste market for 2024. The study was subsequently supplemented with an analysis of cost and revenue levels in 2025 and 2026. The findings show that collection, pre-sorting and sorting activities operate at a net shortfall, with revenues insufficient to cover the costs incurred.
The updated net cost prices for 2026 in the Netherlands are:
- Collection and pre-sorting: between €0,07 and €0,12 per kg net shortfall;
- Sorting: between €0,07 and €0,14 per kg net shortfall.
These ranges were used by StUPV as one of the starting points for negotiations with service providers for the period from 2026 onwards. In addition, contracted volumes, the duration of the agreement, market conditions and available capacity formed important building blocks for the individual agreements. To date, a large proportion of service providers have entered into multi-year contracts with the foundation.
Insights for future cost price studies
As this was the first time a study of this scale had been carried out for textile collection and sorting, the approach and design of the Cost Price Study were evaluated within the Textiel Keten Overleg. This evaluation generated valuable insights, identified areas for improvement, and highlighted key themes for future Cost Price Studies.
Areas for improvement in the study approach:
- Providing a more detailed explanation of the activity-based costing methodology applied at the start of the study.
- Replacing the current Excel template with a more user-friendly online environment for data submission.
- Continuing to validate submitted data against participants’ financial records.
- Including an explicit review of each participant’s individual outcome as part of the study process.
- Increasing transparency through the sharing of aggregated interim results.
- Creating more opportunities for coordination between service providers, sector organisations and Stichting UPV Textiel.
Key considerations for future cost price studies:
- Differences in contract models and compensation structures for textile collection among municipalities.
- The processing of textiles originating from outside the Netherlands and its implications for the allocation of costs and revenues.
- The allocation of revenues within organisations that carry out multiple activities or do not apply internal transfer pricing.
- The impact of inventories on cost price calculations, including greater insight into opening and closing inventories.
