This call to action follows a pivotal meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and comes exactly one year after the Antwerp Declaration’s inception, which sought a EU Clean Industrial Deal to work in tandem with the EU Green Deal, thereby protecting quality jobs within Europe.
Euratex, representing 200,000 textile companies and 1.3m workers in Europe, endorsed the EU Clean Industrial Deal as vital for maintaining industrial competitiveness.
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Despite this support, discussions revealed that without prompt and focused intervention, the European textile sector is at risk due to soaring energy costs, regulatory complexities, and uneven competition from imports that evade EU standards.
Euratex president Mario Jorge Machado expressed concern over the industry’s challenges with energy expenses and inequitable competition.
“European textile companies are facing a substantial crisis, combined with an increasingly complex regulatory landscape. We need a level playing field, particularly concerning online platforms that circumvent established quality and sustainability standards,” Machado said.
Speaking to commissioner Hoekstra who is responsible for Climate issues, Machado stated: “We are prepared to take responsibility; however, we cannot achieve our goals in isolation. Europe accounts for less than 10% of global CO2 emissions from textiles — yet we self-impose stringent sustainability regulations while unsustainable imports dominate our market. If this trend persists, we risk outsourcing pollution elsewhere and closing European factories.”
Meanwhile, Euratex has identified four critical areas within the Clean Industrial Deal that require immediate attention to protect the textile sector:
1. An Affordable Energy Action Plan is crucial for maintaining textile production in Europe and preserving jobs.
2. Public Procurement Reform should give preference to EU-produced sustainable textiles in public contracts to encourage responsible manufacturing and demand for eco-friendly innovations.
3. A Competitiveness Fund is needed to provide financial assistance to SMEs so they can invest in new technologies, upskill their workforce, and improve competitiveness.
4. Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships should ensure that trade agreements enforce environmental and social standards throughout supply chains.
Machado added: “We must shift the focus from solely pressuring manufacturers to adopt sustainable practices to actively incentivising consumers and public procurers to choose sustainable options. If the cost of sustainability is not covered by the customer, it will be carried by the planet!'”
The Clean Industrial Deal lays out specific steps to transform decarbonisation into a key growth engine for European industries. This includes reducing energy costs, generating high-quality jobs, and creating favourable conditions for businesses to flourish.
The deal introduces strategies to enhance every phase of production, focusing on:
- Energy-intensive sectors like steel, metals, and chemicals, which need immediate support to reduce emissions, adopt clean energy solutions, and address challenges such as rising costs, unfair global competition, and complicated regulations.
- The clean-tech industry, which is central to maintaining future competitiveness and driving the transformation needed for industrial change, circularity, and decarbonisation.
