From the Sector

The undersigned associations, representing several European industrial sectors, call on EU institutions to maintain the current legal text of the Single-Use Plastic Directive (SUPD), adopted in 2019. While the signatories recognise the importance of ensuring that the SUPD delivers measurable and meaningful environmental outcomes, reopening the Directive now will create legal uncertainty, add disproportionate burden for economic operators that are already navigating partial and often divergent national transpositions, and increase the risk of regulatory overlaps or contradictions with existing and upcoming legislation. Moreover, there is currently insufficient evidence on the effectiveness of the current SUPD to justify a revision, as described below: 

• Insufficient evidence to inform a revision of the SUPD. 
  An impact assessment of the SUPD cannot be carried out at a moment when several of its provisions are not yet in place. While a first report on the state of implementation of the SUPD was published in April 2026, it remains partial, and reporting is not harmonised, preventing meaningful comparison of data across countries. Taking the example of consumption reduction targets, Member States and other EEA countries only reported data on SUP products placed on the market in 2022 and, even for this report, did so using different indicators. Crucially, since the target on consumption reduction is set for 2026, no data are yet available on whether that target has been achieved. In summary, the partial application of the SUPD and the limited data available suggest that a revision of the SUPD would be premature at this time. 
• Preventing further fragmentation and gold-plating. 
  The transposition of the SUPD has produced significant regulatory fragmentation, uneven enforcement, and widespread instances of gold plating, creating persistent uncertainty for companies active across multiple Member States. The result is a patchwork of national rules that undermines the integrity of the Single Market, inflates compliance costs, and fails to deliver proportionate environmental benefits. These structural shortcomings must be fully recognised in the evaluation of the SUPD and effectively addressed prior to considering a reopening of the Directive. 
• Ensuring legal certainty for economic operators. 
  A revision of the SUPD would create legal uncertainty for companies and Member States that are still implementing several of its provisions. While the SUPD entered into force in mid-2021, the date of application for most of its provisions is at a later stage. Furthermore, the EU Commission has only recently adopted some of the implementing decisions and guidelines on the current SUPD. Any change to the SUPD at a moment when companies are still adapting to new obligations, and Member States are still in the process of implementing some key provisions, would create legal uncertainty for economic operators who do not know whether targets or the scope of the SUPD may change. Legal uncertainty carries significant economic costs for economic operators, notably in terms of investment delays likely to persist throughout the entire SUPD revision process (2–3 years). 
• Avoiding overlaps with other legislation. 
  Revising the SUPD while the Ecodesign and Packaging Regulations are still being implemented, and as negotiations on the Circular Economy Act (CEA) begin, increases the risk of regulatory overlaps and contradictions. These frameworks cover intersecting areas and a revision of the SUPD in parallel with the CEA would almost inevitably lead to duplicative or conflicting provisions. Even if the EU Commission ensured full coherence in its proposal, the co-legislators could still introduce provisions that diverge from or contradict the SUPD framework, further undermining legal certainty and the functioning of the Single Market. 

At a time when EU leaders have made regulatory simplifications and a fully integrated Single Market central to Europe’s competitiveness agenda, we urge EU policymakers to focus legislative efforts where they are most needed and avoid reopening a framework that has yet to deliver concrete results.

Originally developed as an umbrella framework by innovation platform Fashion for Good, the RE&UP Fiber Club aims to accelerate the commercial adoption of circular Next-Gen materials across the global fashion ecosystem. 

Shifting the paradigm of fashion sustainability from isolated capsule collections to structural, industrial-scale reality, RE&UP announced the official launch of RE&UP and its Fiber Club. This landmark initiative introduces a collaborative consortium framework, originally developed as an umbrella framework by innovation platform Fashion for Good, designed to dismantle traditional supply chain barriers and accelerate the global adoption of premium recycled materials. 

For years, the integration of high-quality, next-generation recycled textiles has been hindered by fragmented supply chains, restrictive minimum order quantities (MOQs), and prohibitive upfront costs, frequently trapping sustainability initiatives in a perpetual "pilot phase". RE&UP is changing the rules. 

The journey within RE&UP and its Fiber Club is engineered to be straightforward and structurally de-risked, guiding brand partners through four clear operational phases: 

1. Consortium structure & alignment: Establishing the framework and aligning key supply chain stakeholders. 
2. Initial material sampling: Reviewing standardized material specifications and aligning on specific supply terms. 
3. Pilot collection development: Designing and launching an initial commercial collection at the individual brand level. 
4. Long-Term partnership: Securing long-term fiber purchase commitments at predictable, discounted rates, successfully transitioning brands to a permanent circular supply chain. 

"The technology to recycle textiles is only half the battle; the real hurdle is commercial alignment. With RE&UP and its Fiber Club, the baseline for high-volume, compliant circularity is active and operationally ready today. We are giving forward-thinking brands the plug-and-play infrastructure required to stop experimenting with sustainability and start scaling it," said Andreas Dorner, General Manager of RE&UP.

Technological upgrading and the transition toward higher value-added production are driving the new Italian industrial mission to Bangladesh. This year, the mission will split between the country’s two main manufacturing hubs, where Italian manufacturers will meet the leaders of the local textile supply chain in two strategic stages: July 7th in Dhaka and July 9th in Chittagong.

The double appointment shines a spotlight on a market that confirms itself as a true cornerstone for Italian exports in Asia—a geographical area that alone absorbs 40% of the sector’s foreign sales, reaching a value of 667 million euros. Bangladesh’s role has grown steadily, culminating in 2025 with a turnover of 71 million euros and posting a double-digit increase (+17% compared to the previous year).

Production flexibility and the ability to create customized technological niches are the hallmarks of the roughly 300 companies making up the Italian textile machinery industry—a highly internationalized sector that exports 86% of its production to 130 countries.

“The 2025 figures speak clearly: the 17% growth testifies that the Bangladeshi textile industry views Italian manufacturers as an irreplaceable partner to win the global challenge of quality and efficiency,” comments Marco Salvadè, President of ACIMIT. “The decision to visit both Dhaka and Chittagong with this workshop stems from our desire to closely support the country’s two industrial engines, offering tailored solutions capable of generating an immediate technological upgrade and guiding local players toward more sustainable models. This journey also represents an ideal springboard ahead of ITMA Hanover 2027, the global stage where we will showcase the next major evolutions of our technology.”

The workshop—promoted by the Italian Trade Agency (ICE) and ACIMIT and organized with the valuable support of the Embassy of Italy in Dhaka—will be structured to maximize networking opportunities through targeted B2B business meetings and in-depth technical seminars in both cities. It will feature the participation of the following Italian companies:

COLOR SERVICE, CORINO MACCHINE, DANTI, DURST, L.A.I.P., LAWER, MONTI – MAC, MS PRINTING SOLUTIONS, ROJ, PENTEK, PINTER CAIPO, REGGIANI MACCHINE, SALVADE’, TECNORAMA, UGOLINI.