Textile Exchange Publishes Materials Market Report 2026: Global Fibre Production Hits a Record 139 Million Tonnes

According to Textile Exchange’s Materials Market Report 2026, published on 22 September 2026, global fibre production reached a record 139 million tonnes in 2025, up from 132 million tonnes in 2024. The increase was driven by virgin fossil-based fibre production, which rose from 81 million tonnes to 86 million tonnes.

Polyester accounted for 59% of global fibre production with 82.5 million tonnes, of which 72.8 million tonnes (88%) was virgin fossil-based polyester. Recycled polyester production rose from 9.4 million tonnes to 9.7 million tonnes, 97% of which came from plastic bottles. Textile-to-textile recycled fibre production across all fibres rose from 0.61% in 2021 to 0.76% in 2025. Cotton ranked second with an 18% share, while man-made cellulosic fibres accounted for 7% and animal fibres for 1% in total.

Cotton from certified programmes reached 9.4 million tonnes, or 37% of all virgin cotton, compared with 8.4 million tonnes (35%) in 2024. Production of certified greasy wool under the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) rose from 70,389 tonnes (3.8% of global greasy wool) to 79,135 tonnes (4.5%).

According to the organisation’s Materials Benchmark data, the share of cotton, polyester, polyamide (nylon), viscose and wool sourced from sustainability programmes by the 384 participating brands and retailers rose from 68% in 2024 to 72% in 2025, while the share of preferred production systems in the global production of these fibres across all industries is 20%. The share of recycled sources in the polyester used by participants rose from 67% to 76%, while this share remained flat at 12% in global production. According to Textile Exchange’s modelling, greenhouse gas emissions of the apparel, home textiles, bags and footwear sectors reached a new high in 2025 at approximately 325 million tonnes CO2e, around 30% higher than the 2019 baseline. The full report is available on the Textile Exchange website.