A growing number of UK fashion and textile businesses are embedding sustainability into their operations, driven increasingly by regulatory requirements and the need to demonstrate credible progress, according to findings from UKFT’s latest sustainability survey.

Launched in August 2025, the second industry-wide survey expanded its scope to capture insights from across the full UK textile and fashion supply chain, moving beyond the manufacturing focus of the organisation’s first survey in 2023. A total of 91 businesses participated, including manufacturers, brands and retailers, representing a broad range of production activities such as spinning, knitting, weaving, printing, dyeing and finishing, nonwovens and garment manufacturing.

The results show clear progress across the sector. 70% per cent of responding businesses now have a sustainability strategy in place, compared with 67% in 2023, while 81% are actively collecting environmental performance data. Key areas of measurement include energy use, carbon and greenhouse gas emissions, textile waste, chemical usage, water pollution and wider waste generation.

Legislation, reputation and achieving environmental or social impact were identified as the primary drivers for sustainability action. When asked why they pursue sustainability certifications or standards, 61% of businesses cited reputation, 55% regulatory compliance, up from 52% in the previous survey, and 50% reducing environmental impact, down from 83% in 2023. The shift suggests businesses are becoming more focused on meeting regulatory expectations and increasingly confident in their ability to respond to emerging requirements.

Overall, the latest results indicate a sector that is engaged, ambitious and increasingly structured in its approach to sustainability, but still facing challenges in accessing specialist expertise, reliable data and robust systems needed to evidence progress with confidence. While businesses have taken measurable steps forward since 2023, maintaining momentum remains a key priority.

UKFT will continue to provide support where it is most needed, including guidance, training and collaborative industry projects, helping UK fashion and textile businesses strengthen implementation and accelerate progress towards a more sustainable and competitive future.

Interested in reading the full report? UKFT members can email info@ukft.org to access.