Textile Exchange Benchmark Exposes Apparel’s Raw-Material Traceability Gap

Textile Exchange published its Materials Benchmark Insights and Trends 2026 on September 22. The fact sheet aggregates 2025 data from 384 participating fashion, textile and apparel brands and retailers, including subsidiary brands.

The results show progress among reporting companies, but they also identify two issues that apparel buyers and manufacturers cannot solve with a material claim alone: limited origin visibility and very low use of textile-to-textile feedstocks.

Preferred sourcing increased among participants

For cotton, polyester, polyamide, viscose and wool, the share sourced through standards, certifications and other preferred production programs rose from 68% in 2024 to 72% in 2025 among reporting companies. Textile Exchange compares that with a 20% share across global production of those fibers.

Participants also reported that 82% of their cotton came from preferred production systems. Recycled polyester represented 76% of their polyester uptake in 2025, up from 67% in 2024.

Traceability remains the operational weakness

Despite the stronger sourcing figures, 79% of raw materials used by benchmark participants were reported with an unknown country of origin. Textile-to-textile feedstocks accounted for only 2% of the five major fiber categories in both 2024 and 2025.

These figures should be read carefully. Textile Exchange states that benchmark participants outperform the wider industry, so the findings are not a representative average for every fashion company. They are still useful because they show that even relatively engaged companies struggle to connect material targets with origin data.

What apparel buyers should request

• Record fiber country of origin separately from spinning, fabric and garment manufacturing locations.
• Define the chain-of-custody model used for each certified or recycled claim.
• Require transaction or scope documents at the stage where the selected standard applies.
• Separate bottle-derived recycled polyester from textile-to-textile recycled polyester in bills of materials.
• Use consistent supplier, facility and material identifiers across purchase orders and sustainability systems.
• Track unknown fields as data-quality exceptions with an owner and deadline.

Factories can turn evidence into a sourcing advantage

OEM and ODM manufacturers can prepare traceability packs before buyers request them. A useful pack connects the approved bill of materials with supplier declarations, certificates, transaction records, testing and production lots. It should state what is known, what is estimated and what remains unavailable.

For outerwear, swimwear, activewear and hoodies, buyers should map every major component rather than focusing only on the shell fabric. Linings, insulation, elastane, sewing thread, rib, labels and trims can materially affect both recycled-content calculations and end-of-life options.

Use the benchmark as a management signal

The benchmark suggests that portfolio-level targets are advancing faster than granular origin visibility. Procurement teams can respond by adding traceability completeness to supplier scorecards and product approval gates. This turns missing origin data into a measurable sourcing risk rather than a late-stage reporting problem.

Source: Textile Exchange — Materials Benchmark Insights and Trends 2026.