When used-clothing collection bins are formally integrated into a nation's postal logistics system, textile waste management transcends sporadic NGO efforts. Turkey's latest textile recycling initiative, deploying collection points at all branches of state-run postal operator PTT, marks the institutionalization of the Zero Waste slogan.
Background
This action is the newest extension of Turkey's Zero Waste project, launched in 2017 under the patronage of First Lady Emine Erdoğan. The core goals are reducing waste generation, improving resource efficiency, and implementing source-separated waste collection. Six years on, the project has entered a phase of fine-tuned operations, with textile recycling carved out as a dedicated track.
Zero Waste Foundation Chairman Samet Ağılbaş outlined the operational logic: collected garments are first registered, then transported to processing centers. Workers sort them by type, fabric, condition, and reuse value, followed by uniform disinfection. Wearable items are distributed through social aid channels; non-wearable textiles enter the recycling stream.
Industry Impact
This model carries multiple implications. First, channel scaling. Embedding collection points within the national postal network dramatically increases coverage density and public trust compared to ordinary community bins. PTT has thousands of branches nationwide, and once this infrastructure is activated, logistics costs for old-clothing collection drop sharply while efficiency rises exponentially.
Second, institutionalized graded utilization. Turkey's approach is not simply "collect old clothes" but establishes a clear quality hierarchy: wearable goes to charity, non-wearable goes to recycling. This directly addresses a chronic pain point in the textile industry where mixed-fabric garments without proper sorting end up in landfills. Turkey's system effectively performs raw-material sorting at the source, providing cleaner feedstock for downstream recycled fiber production.
Third, a commercial closed loop. Ağılbaş noted that partner companies donate new garments in return, which are then distributed to needy communities. This transforms the collection action from one-way charity into a positive cycle: old clothes collected → companies donate new ones → brands gain CSR image → consumers participate. For textile brands, this offers more tangible brand equity than simply buying carbon offsets.