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.

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