The Textile Exchange released two reports this week outlining sustainability gains and overall growth in the global fiber and textile industry. The Materials Market Report breaks down global production volumes by weight used across the textile, clothing, leather and footwear industries, while the Materials Benchmark details aggregated data and trends from 384 brands and retailers who took part in the benchmark in 2025.

According to the Materials Market Report, global fiber production increased to a record 139 million metric tons in 2025, up from 132 million metric tons the year prior—the equivalent of 17 grams of fiber per person, more than double the per-person amount of 50 years ago.

Polyester continues to lead in fiber production, accounting for 59 percent of global output, with no change from 2024. However, the total weight of polyester produced did increase to 82.5 million metric tons from 77.7 million metric tons in 2024. Production of recycled polyester also saw a modest increase in 2025, from 9.4 million metric tons the year prior to 9.7 million. But those numbers don’t reflect growth in textile recycling as 97 percent of that recycled fiber came from plastic bottles.

For all fiber types, textile-to-textile recycling only accounts for less than 1 percent of total production, with marginal growth from 0.61 percent in 2021 to 0.76 percent in 2025.

Cotton came in second behind polyester as the most widely produced textile fiber, accounting for 18 percent of market share, followed by manmade cellulosic fibers at 7 percent. Animal fibers such as wool and cashmere had a combined market share of 1 percent.

Textile Exchange also found that cotton from certified programs increased to 9.4 million metric tons in 2025, which accounts for 37 percent of all virgin fiber. That’s a 35 percent increase from 8.4 million metric tons in 2024. The report also noted that two-thirds of manmade cellulosic fibers such as viscose and modal were produced using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and/or Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) certified or controlled feedstock, which was the same in 2024.

Textile Exchange’s Responsible Wool Standard—which evaluates farmers and ranchers on animal welfare, land management and social requirements—saw production of certified greasy wool increase from 70,389 metric tons in 2024 to 79,135 tons in 2025. That’s an uptick from 3.8 percent of global greasy wool to 4.5 percent year-over-year.

Looking at the companies participating in Textile Exchange’s Materials Benchmark—a voluntary aggregation and analysis of fiber- and raw material-related progress on sustainability goals—adoption of more sustainably produced materials increased, as well.

Material Benchmark participants increased their use of cotton, polyester, nylon, viscose and wool sourced through standards, certifications and other verification programs from 68 percent in 2024 to 72 percent in 2025. In comparison, only 20 percent of total global volume fiber production was represented by fibers from preferred production systems.

Cotton led the way in that charge, with 82 percent of participants’ total cotton sourcing coming from these programs compared to 38 percent of total global cotton production volumes.

“Our latest annual data offers evidence of the progress that can be made when companies are committed, engaged, and willing to work together to accelerate the transition to preferred production systems,” said Beth Jensen, chief impact officer at Textile Exchange. “From an increase in the proportion of materials from sustainability programs used, to reduced reliance on virgin fossil-based inputs, those who are part of the Textile Exchange community are demonstrating their leadership, outpacing the trends seen across the global production volume data.”

A full 92.4 percent of Materials Benchmark participants reported having formal climate targets in place and said they are progressing in setting formal nature targets. Participating brands and retailers also reported prioritizing animal welfare, with 88 percent of participants using animal fibers from producers with an animal welfare policy.

Materials Benchmark participants also slightly decreased their use of new, virgin, fossil fuel-based polyester from 0.54 million metric tons in 2024 to 0.48 million metric tons in 2025. Conversely, global production of that same material increased from 68 million metric tons in 2024 to 73 million metric tons in 2025. The share of recycled polyester in global fiber production held steady at 12 percent from 2024 to 2025.

Textile Exchange noted that more work needs to be done to increase textile-to-textile recycled polyester production and usage. An estimated 1.5 percent of recycled polyester used by Materials Benchmark participants came from textile sources, equivalent to 1.1 percent of all polyester used by the group. That compares to an estimated 3 percent of global recycled polyester production coming from textile sources last year, equivalent to 0.3 percent of total global polyester production. The overwhelming majority of recycled polyester still comes from plastic bottles and other non-textile sources.

“We must continue to work collectively toward scaling preferred production systems such as regeneratively and organically grown natural materials and textile-to-textile recycling,” Jensen said. “At Textile Exchange, we’ll continue working with our members to accelerate these efforts, through alignment around shared aggregate targets, pathways to preferred production systems, and collective action opportunities. Together, we can turn these pockets of progress into lasting change.”