The Role of Recycled Fiber Felt After 2030: Why Rebornfiber® Is Necessary

Looking toward 2030, a national project for "fiber-to-fiber" recycling is moving into full swing in Japan. Consortia like CFT2 have been established, bringing together material manufacturers such as Toray and Teijin Frontier, as well as public institutions like NEDO and RITE, to begin working on horizontal recycling that turns discarded clothing back into yarn and fabric.
Even in the government's roadmap, the resource circulation of textile products is positioned as a key pillar for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, with a major shift proposed from "burning and burying" to "circulating." However, no matter how much "fiber-to-fiber" is promoted as a national project, it is, in reality, impossible to process all discarded clothing through "fiber-to-fiber" methods.
The reasons are as follows.

• The composition of the materials is too complex.

• There is a wide variety of blends, multi-layer structures, and finishes (such as printing, coating, and brushing).

• A large number of items are heavily soiled or damaged.

• The cost and energy burden of chemical and bio-recycling cannot be lowered enough to be applied to all clothing.

Facing this reality, it becomes clear that in Japan after 2030, a "hybrid circulation" that combines both "fiber-to-fiber" and "recycled fiber felt" will be the realistic path forward.

A mountain of 510,000 tons—not everything can be returned to high-end use.

Currently, it is said that approximately 790,000 tons of clothing are discarded annually in Japan.
While a portion is reused as second-hand clothing (280,000 tons), the reality is that a significant amount (510,000 tons) is sent to incineration or landfill. Even if "fiber-to-fiber" technology advances significantly, sorting and separation infrastructure is established nationwide, and the processing capacity for chemical and bio-recycling increases dramatically, it is not realistic to return almost all of those 510,000 tons back into clothing fibers.
For clothing with high blend ratios, many accessories or foreign materials, and significant dirt or damage, it is more rational—both environmentally and economically—to utilize the "volume as fiber" for other applications rather than returning it to a horizontal loop, considering the processing costs and energy burden.
Therefore, in Japan after 2030, we must accept that a division of roles is inevitable: a certain percentage of discarded clothing will go to "fiber-to-fiber," while a significant portion of the remainder will go to recycled fiber felt. I imagine that a composition where at least half, or in some cases 60–70%, of the total must rely on conventional or advanced recycled fiber felt routes is closer to the reality of the 2030s.

The positioning of Rebornfiber®: A "receptacle," an "outlet," and a "material."

In such a future, recycled fiber felt like Rebornfiber® is not merely a "receptacle for leftovers." Rather, I believe it will be positioned as one of the "foundational infrastructures" that supports the circular economy.
First is its role as a receptacle. It serves as a realistic outlet to salvage clothing that is technically or economically difficult to put into advanced "fiber-to-fiber" recycling lines, keeping it in a fiber state as much as possible. This is not because "there is no other use for it," but because it is the "path that can save the most with the least amount of strain."
Second is its role as an outlet. Rebornfiber® can be processed into boards and sheets and expanded into sound-absorbing materials, insulation, underlayment, interior materials, furniture, fixtures, and miscellaneous goods. This is a "wide outlet" not limited to apparel use, and it is also a stable application that is less susceptible to inventory fluctuations or trends.
Third is its role as a material. After 2030, the demand for environmentally friendly materials in fields such as construction, interior design, acoustic environments, soundproofing, and insulation will increase further. There is significant potential for recycled fiber felt to increase its presence as a material that replaces gypsum board, rock wool, and glass wool. The narrative of "building materials made from discarded clothing" and "circular interior materials" will also become a major value.
Combining these three roles, couldn't we say that Rebornfiber® is a "conversion device" that firmly catches the areas that "fiber-to-fiber" cannot pick up, while transforming them into other social values?

The landscape after 2030: A two-story circular structure.

When I imagine resource circulation in the 2030s, I think of a "two-story circulation" structure.
On the first floor, there is recycled fiber felt. This is the base layer that handles volume. It is the layer that collects and garnets complex clothing, heavily soiled or damaged clothing, and a wide variety of discarded clothing as fibers, converting them into thick boards and sheet materials for construction, interiors, furniture, and miscellaneous goods.
On the second floor, there is "fiber-to-fiber." This is the upper layer that pursues high quality and high-end applications. It is the layer that takes clothing that has cleared sorting and separation conditions and uses advanced chemical, biological, and mechanical technologies to return it to yarn and fabric, circulating it again as clothing or high-value-added textiles.
Only when this two-story structure is in place will a "Japanese-style circular economy" that considers the nearly 790,000 tons of annual discarded clothing become realistic.
It cannot be established with just one or the other. Technically advanced "fiber-to-fiber" alone cannot handle the volume, and recycled fiber felt alone would make the "narrative of circulation" feel flat. Both share roles and sometimes connect to support the whole—it is truly a circular ecosystem.

The evolution required of Rebornfiber®: From "just felt" to the "key to circulation."

In this context, Rebornfiber® itself is also required to evolve.
One is the evolution of performance. It is important to aim for a level where it can sufficiently compete with existing materials like gypsum board and rock wool in technical indicators such as sound absorption, insulation, durability, processability, and safety. Only by being a material that is "not only good for the environment but also excellent in performance," rather than "good for the environment but second-rate in performance," will it truly be chosen.
Another is the evolution of explanatory power. It is required to demonstrate "why recycled fiber felt is necessary," "what it solves," and "how much discarded clothing it is saving" through both data and stories. This is the work of showing quantitative indicators such as LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), CO2 reduction, and waste reduction, combined with stories of collaboration and implementation with companies, local governments, and users.
And finally, what is important is the evolution of the network. Deepening cooperation with "fiber-to-fiber" players, municipal collection schemes, apparel, the construction and interior industries, designers, and educational institutions to expand Rebornfiber® not as a "point" but as a "plane." It is no exaggeration to say that this network construction will determine the value of recycled fiber felt after 2030.

Because we "cannot save everything," there are things we can save.

As we enter an era where "fiber-to-fiber" is promoted as a national project, the slogan "all clothing through 'fiber-to-fiber'" may be held up as a kind of ideal.
However, in reality, while it is a dream that may not be fulfilled, it is also a "North Star" that indicates the direction we should aim for. The real question we should face is not "what percentage can be made into 'fiber-to-fiber'," but rather "how do we save the remaining tens of percent?"
Recycled fiber felt, including Rebornfiber®, is one of the realistic and powerful answers to that question.
Precisely because not everything can be returned to high-end use, we regain value in other forms. We quietly, yet surely, connect clothing that was meant to be discarded to new roles. In the world after 2030, recycled fiber felt will become increasingly important as "another pillar of circulation that is needed precisely because it is the era of 'fiber-to-fiber'."
In that future, how Rebornfiber® is positioned and how far it can evolve may become a barometer for measuring the maturity of Japan's circular economy.