This call to action comes following a significant meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, marking the one-year anniversary of the Antwerp Declaration. The Declaration called for an EU Clean Industrial Deal to complement the EU Green Deal, aiming to protect quality jobs while advancing sustainability within Europe.
Euratex, representing 200,000 textile companies and 1.3 million workers across Europe, has strongly endorsed the EU Clean Industrial Deal, emphasizing its importance for safeguarding industrial competitiveness. However, discussions highlighted that without swift and focused measures, the European textile sector faces severe risks due to rising energy costs, complex regulations, and unfair competition from imports that fail to meet EU standards.
Euratex President Mario Jorge Machado voiced deep concern over the challenges threatening the industry. “European textile companies are facing a substantial crisis, compounded by an increasingly complex regulatory environment. We need a level playing field, especially against online platforms that bypass established quality and sustainability standards,” Machado urged.
Addressing EU Commissioner for Climate Policy, Wopke Hoekstra, Machado further stressed: “We are ready to take responsibility, but Europe cannot tackle this alone. Textiles in Europe contribute less than 10% of global CO2 emissions, yet we impose strict sustainability regulations on ourselves while unsustainable imports dominate our markets. If this continues, we risk outsourcing pollution and shutting down European factories.”
Euratex has identified four critical priorities within the Clean Industrial Deal to safeguard the European textile sector:
- Affordable Energy Action Plan: Essential to ensure the continuity of textile production in Europe while preserving jobs.
- Public Procurement Reform: Encourages prioritizing EU-produced sustainable textiles in public sector contracts, promoting eco-friendly and responsible manufacturing.
- Competitiveness Fund: Provides financial support to SMEs, enabling investments in advanced technologies, workforce upskilling, and improving global competitiveness.
- Clean Trade and Investment Partnerships: Seeks to enforce environmental and social standards in trade agreements to ensure sustainable supply chains.
Machado emphasized the need to incentivize consumers and public procurement systems to prioritize sustainable products. “We must move beyond pressuring manufacturers; consumers and public authorities must actively support sustainable choices. If sustainability costs are ignored, the burden will ultimately fall on our planet,” he stated.
The EU Clean Industrial Deal outlines a comprehensive roadmap to position decarbonisation as a growth driver for European industries. The strategy aims to lower energy costs, create high-quality jobs, and foster favourable conditions for businesses to thrive.
The plan particularly focuses on supporting energy-intensive industries such as steel, metals, and chemicals to lower emissions, adopt clean energy technologies, and overcome challenges like rising costs, global competition, and regulatory barriers. Additionally, the clean-tech sector is identified as crucial for future competitiveness, driving industrial transformation, circularity, and decarbonisation.
