‘Do the Right Thing’: Recycling ‘Down Under’

Amid regulatory pressures in states such as Massachusetts to divert ragged-out textiles – particularly cotton-polyester garments – from landfills, Alsco Uniforms – Australia is partnering with an Aussie firm that’s pioneered a process that breaks out polyester for reuse in plastic products. What’s more, cellulose from the cotton serves as a component for a hydromulch that’s sprayed on areas cleared of plant life for building projects in order to grow new vegetation.

In July 2021, Alsco Uniforms – Australia signed a contract with the recycling firm. Group Chief Executive Mark Roberts told Textile Services Weekly that he’s pleased with the division’s progress to date in recycling both garments and flatwork. “Our relationship developed based on being a consistent, reliable supplier of quality feedstock for the process. Alsco Uniforms had been searching for a long time for a better solution for our used textiles – we had been aware of this company as early as 2018 (when it was founded), followed their progress closely, and were very excited to see the vision come to fruition when the Logan plant in Brisbane was commissioned.”

Currently, Alsco Uniforms is recycling textiles from across Australia; 13 laundry facilities are using this process. The lone exception is Perth on the West Coast, due to high freight costs for moving these items to Brisbane, which is on the East Coast. Alsco Uniforms is sending its recycling partner 30 tons a month from plants across Australia, said the recycling vendor. Roberts hopes to add the Perth laundry facility as well. “We are working on an economical solution for Perth, which has been a little harder due to geography and logistics,” he said. “The cost of freighting used textiles across the continent to Brisbane is prohibitive – ideally it would be great to establish a facility in all states, but this of course is subject to raising capital and stimulating further investment.”

Meanwhile, the global linen and uniform company is expanding its recycling efforts. The company is now recycling any cotton or poly-blended textile, including garments and flatwork. “We are not concerned by the textile’s end use, only its fiber composition,” the recycling vendor said. “We process polyester/cotton blends of all mixes; pure polyester; pure cotton and any MMCFs (manmade cellulosic fibers; made from wood pulp or cellulosic fibers from trees, such as Viscose or lyocell). We work across linen and uniforms.”

As for affordability, customers pay a fee to help cover the costs of the program, which includes participation by not-for-profit groups. “We have a gate-fee structure paid for by the client, which we use to pay transport and subsidize wages for the decommissioning partners we use,” the vendor said. “We don’t aim to make profit on the gate fee, merely to cover costs.”

Alsco Uniforms – Australia says participating in the recycling project costs twice as much as it would to landfill its ragouts. However, Roberts and his leadership team feel that the expense is justified because it’s helping to promote sustainability. “There is no revenue for us in the program,” he said. “The price we pay to the vendor to dispose of our used textiles is more than we ordinarily would pay to send to landfill by a factor of roughly 2-1. However we view it as worthwhile to pay a bit more to do the right thing.” Watch for follow-up coverage in Textile Services magazine. Click here for details.