EU seizes 7,000 tonnes of illegal textile waste in Italy-Turkey bust
The seizure of thousands of tonnes of mislabelled synthetic clothing exposes the illicit profits being made as Europe struggles to manage a mounting waste crisis driven by ultra-fast fashion.
European anti-fraud investigators have uncovered a large-scale operation illegally exporting more than 7,000 tonnes of textile waste from Italy to Turkey. The probe, led by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) alongside Italian and Turkish authorities, resulted in the seizure of roughly €12 million in financial assets and a fleet of trucks following raids on a business complex in Brescia.
Authorities found that shipments containing high levels of acrylic fibres were deliberately mislabelled to avoid strict disposal rules. Because these synthetic materials take up to 200 years to break down, their recycling is complex and expensive, creating a lucrative black market for organised networks looking to bypass legitimate costs.
"Schemes such as this one that offer ways to illegally avoid the cost of recycling certain kinds of textile waste or complying with environmental rules are an opportunity for organised networks to make illegal gains," said OLAF director general Petr Klement. Inspectors initially intercepted 4,200 tonnes upon arrival in Turkey before locating an additional 2,100 tonnes in a noncompliant warehouse and a separate 768-tonne stockpile incorrectly labelled at the port of Mersin.
The fast fashion backlash
The case highlights the immense pressure on Europe's waste management infrastructure. The EU's textile sector generated €170 billion in turnover and employed 1.3 million people in 2023, yet the industry produced roughly 12.6 million tonnes of waste in 2019. Only about one-fifth of that was separately collected for reuse or recycling.
As clothing is increasingly treated as disposable, France is leading a coalition of five EU member states pushing the European Commission to crack down on ultra-fast fashion. The group warns that cheap imports from online platforms like Shein and Temu are overwhelming European waste systems, threatening environmental goals and fuelling unsustainable consumer behaviour.
The member states are urging the Commission to strengthen market surveillance, close enforcement gaps and introduce additional performance requirements for textile waste. They also want stronger extended producer responsibility schemes to support a transition to closed-loop recycling.
"We are relatively ahead in this area and we are pleased to be able to share our experience and how Europe can move forward together on this topic as well," said French ecological transition minister Monique Barbut.
New EU textile-waste management rules introduced in 2025 are designed to directly address the type of fraud uncovered in the Italy-Turkey scheme by blocking the false labelling of waste as reusable goods. The legislation also expands OLAF's mandate to support investigations into waste trafficking across the continent.
