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EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

environment.ec.europa.eu

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Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#241

Post by isodev »

radu_floricica wrote: post #129

> To prevent misuse, businesses relying on these exemptions must provide proof (e.g. documents or test results) and publish annual reports on what they have discarded. I wonder if anybody is keeping track of everything a mid size business needs to take care of. Each particular report probably sounds like a reasonable request, but by now they're probably well into hundreds, and they're all outside the actual scope of…

As a mid sized business in touch with other mid-sized businesses - the burden you speak of doesn't exist. If you read the directive and others like it carefully, you will find they’re well integrated into reporting you already do. Each member state also adapts these to best fit their local legislation.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#242

Post by pqtyw »

tialaramex wrote: post #84
pcdevils wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's companies dumping unsold ranges of clothes as new ranges come in. Not people.

Ya, and this is hugely driven by "Fast Fashion". If you're a company which made raincoats since the 1880s and the style with more buttons and few zips starts to be less popular maybe you make fewer of those and more of the zip ones next season, and in five years you've gone from 90% button 10% zip to the reverse. Companies like that don't destroy a lot of stock. They do a few discount sales, end-of-line price slashes…

[dead]

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#243

Post by snowpid »

mattalex wrote: post #223
cbg0 wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're arguing in favor of destroying unworn clothes instead of donating to charity or discounting them as somehow being good for business? The point of this is to control against wasteful business practices, not a ban on producing or selling clothes. The EU is a $23 trillion economy, hardly a slouch even though it is underperforming. The VW example is actually something you probably don't understand - they're failin…

I wouldn't even say that VW is a failing company: They sold the largest number of EVs in the EU in 2025 ( https://autovista24.autovistagroup.com/news/which-brand-domi... ) and that is before you consider that e.g. Audi, Cupra and Skoda are _also_ VW brands (and some of the ford cars are built on top of VW's EV platform). The main problem they have is that you just need a fraction of the number of people to build an e…

thank you! These are the comments I drive on HN. Not the lazy take, EU economy is failling because of fashion regulation.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#244

Post by s1artibartfast »

UltraSane wrote: post #225
s1artibartfast wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lowering the price doesnt solve the problems of lost revenue and higher costs. Most goods are priced such that you cant make more money on increased volume by lowering the cost.

The concern isn't lost revenue it is empty stomachs. You should care more about the empty stomachs.

If people dont make money, then nobody grows the food or the store closes.

I also dont think hunger is a real problem in the US. Death from gluttony is far more common. For those who are hungry, there are already oppurtinities to get food. Putting more free food there doesnt help if they dont have access, or if they are a crackhead.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#245

Post by s1artibartfast »

zb3 wrote: post #226
s1artibartfast wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lowering the price doesnt solve the problems of lost revenue and higher costs. Most goods are priced such that you cant make more money on increased volume by lowering the cost.

While my sibling comment said it all, note that destroying them also costs money, hence if those can't be sold, it's a loss of profit already, lower the price and let people eat.. > higher costs. Higher costs of what? Of those new fruits? Well, maybe wasting food should cost?

Destroying food is pretty cheap. you put it in the dumpster. Picking through it, sending it to a shelter, and vetting the people at the shelter seems more expensive.

> Well, maybe wasting food should cost? Why? Wasting food should be be free. The owner paid for it.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#246

Post by sixhobbits »

bananamogul wrote: post #119

"Companies may only destroy unsold clothes and shoes in limited cases, such as when items are unsafe or damaged, counterfeit or infringing intellectual property rights, or are rejected by charities or donation schemes." Nike's unsold, defective, or returned shoes are ground up to make carpet padding. They're processed by the truckload in a large grinding machine. It seems that under these rules, this would be illegal…

This seems kinda backwards, as far as I know charities and donation schemes are overwhelmed by clothing donations. Our problem isn't that we are destroying clothes that could be used somewhere else, the problems are manufacturing low quality clothing that lasts 2-3 wears, and fast fashion where people buy clothing for a specific event.

If they want to achieve their goals they should be aiming for demand destruction on _new_ clothes, once the clothes are unwanted it's too late.

But seems better to somehow incentivize fabric recycling and higher quality clothes. Even expensive clothes fall apart these days.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#247

Post by DangitBobby »

r3trohack3r wrote: post #227
seszett wrote: post #208

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that a justification for resuming slavery, child labour and dumping chemicals in our rivers?

Pretty sure you can oppose slavery and support what GP said without significant cognitive dissonance

Not really. It's a race to the bottom.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#248

Post by SpicyLemonZest »

Dylan16807 wrote: post #240
SpicyLemonZest wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not so easy to give things away at scale. If someone deposited 500 kilograms of assorted meat products outside your front door right now, with a note attached saying they need to be consumed or frozen in the next 24 hours or they'll go bad, how much work would it take for you to deal with that? Clothing is of course a bit easier to deal with (it'll still grow mildew if you don't protect it from moisture!), but t…

Is that scenario supposed to be relevant? This isn't some random guy. Their entire job is dealing with the logistics of big piles of clothes, and they have months in advance to plan.

There just aren't that many people in developed countries who can make use of a pallet of unsellable clothing. Even free clothing distributors - which most organizations accepting clothing donations are not, by the way - generally strive to provide a broad selection of desirable clothing rather than a bunch of copies of an unpopular shirt.

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#249

Post by vasco »

mattalex wrote: post #188
sajithdilshan wrote: post #87

I’m pretty sure all those brands would now export those clothes to non-EU Balkan countries or even Turkey to be destroyed.

Why do you assume that the entire EU has brain damage and did not think of this _most obvious_ loophole? Sure the companies could commit crimes but if that is enough of a reason not to pass laws then we better start striking murder of the books as well. The EU cannot control every avenue you might be sneaking products out for destruction. The goal is not to prevent all sort of destruction, just make it risky enough n…

Because it happens with other things like recycling rules for most trash? How many years of EU exporting trash to places without regulation now?

Re: EU ban on destruction of unsold clothes and shoes enters into application

#250

Post by b112 »

sajithdilshan wrote: post #109
b112 wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What typically happens is that people buy up these clothes in massive auction/lots, then just sell them on Amazon. As Amazon joins all listings together, 100 sellers of the same item all have the same reviews/etc. So some slightly damaged shirt, or a shirt returned and such, ends up sold by these secondary sellers as new. This is part of why people destroy clothes upon return, so that secondary sellers can't buy thei…

I don’t think m that’s happening in EU. Most of the clothes I see on Amazon are the same as I find on Temu. Only the prices are higher on Amazon

I'm not sure what you mean. Temu has nothing to do with this.

* people buy something on Amazon, return it due to defect or just don't like it

* product is currently sold in lots via auction by Amazon via bids, wholesale (not on amazon.com, but via other channels)

* 3rd parties buy the lots, sort, and re-package and sell on Amazon

As Amazon joins all listings for "shirt brand $x colour $y" into one product listing, this means that the original seller of the shirt, even the brand owner, now is competing with its own returns.

Not sure how to make this clearer.

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