Recycled polyester is one of the fastest-growing fibre categories in apparel, and one of the most misunderstood. This page explains what rPET actually is, the difference between the two main certifications (GRS and RCS), where our recycled polyester comes from, and what we produce with it, from mid-layer fleece to technical activewear knits.
What Is rPET?
rPET is polyester yarn produced from recycled PET flake. The most common source is post-consumer plastic bottles: bottles are collected, sorted, cleaned, shredded into flake, melted and re-polymerised, then extruded as new polyester filament yarn. The resulting fibre performs technically identically to virgin polyester in most fabric applications, same tensile strength, same dye behaviour, same moisture-wicking properties.
The sustainability case: PET bottle recycling into fibre avoids the crude-oil input and part of the energy load of producing virgin polyester, and diverts PET from landfill or ocean waste. It's not a perfect story, recycled polyester is still a plastic, still sheds microfibres, still difficult to further recycle at end of life, but it is meaningfully lower-impact than virgin polyester at scale.
GRS vs RCS: The Two Certifications
Both are Textile Exchange programmes. The difference is scope.
RCS (Recycled Claim Standard):
- Certifies the recycled content of a final product
- Certifies chain of custody from recycling plant through spinning, knitting, cut and sew
- Two tiers: RCS 100 (95%+ recycled) and RCS Blended (5-94%)
- Does not cover wet-processing chemistry or social criteria
GRS (Global Recycled Standard):
- Certifies recycled content and chain of custody (same as RCS)
- Plus environmental processing criteria, chemistry (restricted substances), water, energy management along the chain
- Plus social criteria, no child labour, no forced labour, fair wages, safe working conditions at every certified step
- Minimum 20% recycled content threshold for GRS certification
Buyer preference varies. Most European sustainable-fashion retailers accept RCS for content claims; DACH-market brands and some large multi-brand retailers ask specifically for GRS. We can supply either at fabric level, the choice sits with the brand's positioning and retail buyer requirement.
Where Our rPET Comes From
Primary sourcing: post-consumer PET bottles collected and recycled in Türkiye and adjacent European recycling infrastructure. Turkish PET recycling capacity has expanded substantially in the past decade, with a mature supplier base of certified rPET flake and filament producers. Every batch carries a GRS transaction certificate tracing it back to the recycling plant of origin.
Backup sourcing: Southeast Asian rPET filament (Taiwan and Vietnam) for specific denier or filament shapes not currently produced in Türkiye at the required quality.
Technical Properties
- Moisture management: hydrophobic, wicks moisture rather than absorbing it. Standard property of any polyester, retained in rPET.
- Drying speed: fast. Ideal for activewear and outdoor applications.
- Tensile strength: equivalent to virgin polyester at equivalent yarn count and denier.
- Dye behaviour: disperse dye at high temperature (130°C), standard polyester dyeing process. Colour fastness equivalent to virgin polyester.
- Recyclability at end of life: chemically the same as virgin polyester, so the same end-of-life recycling infrastructure applies, but blended fabrics (cotton-rPET, elastane-rPET) are harder to further recycle. Pure rPET jersey and fleece are the easier end-of-life story.
Applications We Manufacture
- Polar fleece 200-400 GSM, the default sustainable outdoor fleece, 100% rPET
- Micro fleece 130-200 GSM, technical mid-layer, hoodie lining, base layer
- Sherpa fleece 300-450 GSM, statement pieces, jacket linings
- Technical activewear knits, polyester-elastane blends for compression, seamless base layers, brushed athletic fleece
- Shell fabric, light woven rPET for wind jackets, coach jackets, packable outerwear
- Cotton / rPET blended jersey and French terry, the sustainable performance blend for streetwear brands wanting recycled content without going fully synthetic
Applications by Garment
- Activewear (compression tops, leggings, technical tees, running shorts)
- Athleisure (brushed rPET-elastane joggers, oversized rPET tees)
- Technical outerwear (light shell jackets, coach jackets, packable rain shells)
- Mid-layer fleece hoodies and half-zips
- Statement fleece jackets and sherpa coats
- Cotton-rPET streetwear with sustainable positioning
Frequently Asked Questions
Polyester yarn made from recycled PET flake, most commonly post-consumer plastic bottles collected, cleaned, shredded and re-polymerised into new polyester fibre. Technically equivalent to virgin polyester in most applications.
RCS certifies recycled content and chain of custody. GRS adds environmental processing criteria and social criteria across the chain. GRS is the stricter certification.
Post-consumer PET bottles collected and recycled in Türkiye and adjacent European infrastructure, with backup Southeast Asian sourcing for specific yarn constructions. GRS transaction certificates trace each batch.
Polar and micro fleece, sherpa, technical activewear knits (polyester-elastane), shell fabric for jackets, and cotton-rPET blended jersey and French terry.