During Science Week, hosted at Södertälje Science Park, CelluCircle’s CEO/CTO Varvara (Vera) Apostolopoulou-Kalkavoura participated in a panel discussion organised by Telge and moderated by Lydia Capolicchio.
The session brought together voices from across the textile value chain, including Science Park Borås, Kappahl Group, and other key stakeholders, to discuss how Sweden can build a truly circular textile system, particularly in light of the new EU directive that makes municipalities responsible for textile collection.
The panel focused on real-world challenges and opportunities: from producer responsibility and circular design principles to the business models required to make large-scale textile recycling commercially viable. Vera shared how CelluCircle’s technology transforms hard-to-reuse textiles into new value streams, helping to close the loop on fibre-to-fibre recycling.
Following the discussion, the CelluCircle team joined a tour of Telge’s textile sorting facility in Nykvarn. Telge’s site is one of the first large-scale textile sorting centres in Sweden, designed to manage incoming textile flows for reuse, downcycling, and recycling.
It's always fascinating to observe the sorting process and dedication first-hand. This step plays a crucial role upstream, influencing both material quality and cost structures as circular textile systems continue to scale.