CRUK: 100% Wool fibres making a comeback

Wool carpet manufacturers are working hard and are more motivated to promote their natural products, according to Carpet Recycling UK (CRUK) following their participation at the annual Harrogate Flooring Show.

The not-for-profit 130 member-strong organisation, dedicated to diverting carpet and textile flooring waste from landfill, noted a significant rise in interest at the show from the wool sector to move away from the 80/20 mix to 100% wool fibre products.

Adnan Zeb-Khan, CRUK Project Manager, comments: “The wool sector seems to be getting more organised and motivated to promote the recyclability of their products than they have in the past, hence the debut of the Wool Carpet Focus Group and Campaign for Wool at the Flooring Show.

“This is good news for the wool sector and overall industry as it encourages manufacturers, retailers and fitters to promote wool flooring products.

“The presence of wool manufacturers was much more visible this year and highlighted by the Campaign for Wool and British Wool with their eye-catching Shaun the Sheep promotional material.”

Cathie Clarke, CRUK CEO, says: “I thoroughly enjoyed my first Flooring Show in Harrogate. It provided the perfect opportunity to meet with so many of our members as well as introduce myself to many other businesses working across the sector and talk to them about CRUK and our work to improve sustainability in the industry.”

Sustainability Award

The Flooring Show presented its Sustainability Award to the 2024 winner Textfelt, celebrating the company’s considerable efforts to reduce environmental impact in manufacturing processes and commitment to future sustainability vision and practices.

CRUK also noticed an increase in the number of retailers who stopped at their stand to discuss options for sustainable and more cost-effective disposal of carpet and textile flooring waste.

Julie Callaghan, CRUK Membership Manager, comments: “Recent examples include Peter Wallace from Carpet Warehouse on how to improve their recycling efforts and reduce their current waste disposal management costs. Dom Ide from Wholesale Carpets and Flooring Ltd was interested in how he could ethically dispose of his offcuts more easily and cheaply.

“From our experience at the show, retailers are keenly aware that they need to be doing their bit to reduce waste and recycle. CRUK membership is a testament to their willingness and intent to do the right thing with their carpet and textile flooring waste.”

Online database

CRUK recently launched its new online database www.recyclemycarpet.co.uk to enable householders to locate their nearest local authority recycling site accepting carpet and textile flooring waste. The CRUK QR code was on the stand for visitors to scan and visit the online portal to try out the database.

The database makes carpet and textile flooring waste easier and safer to dispose of for the public and also provides a tool for fitters and retailers to pass on to their customers to use.

For more information, email: [email protected] or visit www.carpetrecyclinguk.com.