10 years of Consorzio Detox: a sustainable textile revolution

During an official visit to Florence, King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and Queen Camilla discovered the reality of Consorzio Detox up close. A prestigious meeting between two kindred visions: CID and the British initiative “The Campaign for Wool”. Both organizations share the mission of eliminating hazardous chemicals from textiles to promote truly sustainable fashion.

For the then newly-born Consorzio, this event represented a debut of excellence on the international stage.

CID and IED students together for an eco-friendly capsule collection

The project, which involved Consorzio Detox, Istituto Europeo di Design – IED, and Greenpeace Italy, was born as a call to action to transform sustainable fashion into an urgent necessity.

16 of the best IED students from all over Italy were called upon to develop eco-friendly menswear capsule collections, with the goal of raising awareness among major fashion brands to work with traceable suppliers in order to rid the supply chain of toxic substances.

At the core of the project: ecological sensitivity, technical quality, and the ability to communicate a sustainable creative vision. The sustainable apparel and accessory collections were created using fabrics supplied by several member companies of the Consorzio, selected for their virtuous environmental protection processes: Berto Industria Tessile, Lanificio Bellucci, Lanificio Europa, Manifattura Emmetex, Gruppo Miroglio, Texmoda Tessuti, and Toscofilati.

To make fashion truly clean, water management is essential. In recent years, the synergy with GIDA has transformed the Prato district into a unique industrial model in Europe. Thanks to a cutting-edge industrial aqueduct network, we recover treated wastewater to return it to production processes. This system saves millions of cubic meters of water every year, ensuring that each phase of the cycle respects the strict chemical safety standards of the CID.

Among the advantages of the wastewater treatment plant, we find:

• Water saving: it decreases water consumption for industrial use, preserving drinking resources for the citizens.
• Environmental protection: it drastically reduces the impact of wastewater discharge into the surrounding ecosystem.
• Democratic sustainability: it allows even small companies, lacking the capital for private plants, to actively contribute to resource savings.

Water management thus becomes a collective good, transforming a technical need into an ethical value for the entire district.

With the Detox to 2030 strategy, the CID sets ambitious goals to guide the consortium’s companies beyond the results already achieved and toward an increasingly transparent and sustainable fashion supply chain.

During the event, two new projects were presented:

• The City Gate Project, in collaboration with the Interporto della Toscana Centrale.
• A Memorandum of Understanding in collaboration with ZDHC.

The City Gate Project

The City Gate project stems from the collaboration with Interporto della Toscana Centrale, the LogisLab of the University of Florence, and Tesi Square. It aims to revolutionize logistics in the Prato district. The objective is the total traceability of textile material movements, combined with the use of low environmental impact collective transport.

By monitoring the flows of semi-finished products, which has already involved companies like Nova Fides and Marini Industrie, the project makes the supply chain more efficient and transparent. Optimizing routes and reducing empty trips not only cuts down pollution but also defines a new standard of integrated management capable of becoming a reference model for other Italian districts.

Collaboration between CID & ZDHC

The partnership aims to define a standard model of circular economy for the entire fashion industry. The specific focus is waste reduction and advanced wastewater management. Through a constant exchange of data, expertise, and best practices, CID and ZDHC work together to introduce chemical innovations capable of guaranteeing a completely toxic-free production.

The collaboration strengthens the quality standards of the supply chain and accelerates the sector’s transition toward sustainable and internationally measurable solutions. This partnership elevates the quality standards of the Prato supply chain, confirming its position as a global benchmark for safe chemistry in textiles.

This collaboration continues today, and at the CID 2026 annual assembly, ZDHC presented an update on the Supplier Roadmap to Zero: the comprehensive guidelines on best practices for sustainable chemical management.

Detoxing circularity

For Consorzio Detox, 2022 marked a fundamental milestone with the launch of the PRSL (Product Restricted Substances List) for textile products made of recycled textile fibers (wool, cotton and silk), in collaboration with the international ZDHC foundation. The study on recycled natural fibers—coordinated by a national roundtable involving representatives from major textile districts, testing laboratories, and yarn and fabric companies—led to the creation of its own PRSL (Product Restricted Substances List).
This document is not just a list of banned substances, but a specific guarantee tool for natural and recycled fibers. In fact, this type of standard defines strict parameters for the chemical safety of natural and recycled fibers, guaranteeing total transparency of the finished product to both brands and consumers. Read the article dedicated to PRSL and Detox Circul Art.

Detox Circul-Art: the artwork “Plot”

In 2022, Detox also returned to cultural awareness and collaboration with students through the Detox Circul-Art project and the installation “Plot”. The artwork, created by artist Francesca Pasquali together with students from the Accademia Costume & Moda, was made entirely from textile waste provided by CID companies.
The objective was to demonstrate how the circular economy can transform waste into artistic value, confirming CID’s vision of combining scientific rigor and creativity to regenerate the future of fashion. Read the article dedicated to Detox Circul-Art and the installation “Plot”.

Giving value to what remains unseen

The year 2026 marks Consorzio Detox’s entry as a partner of “InsideOut”: the revolutionary campaign created by the eco-hub C.L.A.S.S. led by Giusy Bettoni to restore consumer trust in the textile supply chain.

The synergy is built on three pillars:

• Sounding board: InsideOut amplifies the CID’s message for a clean supply chain, as highlighted during Giusy Bettoni’s presentation at the Consorzio’s annual assembly.
• The Decalogue of Values: a 10-point guide to evaluate garments beyond aesthetics. The “Health,” “Environment,” and “Dyeing and Finishing” parameters reflect the CID’s technical commitment.
• Active transparency: concrete tools for consumers and buyers to map the supply chain, ensuring ethical garments are not penalized by price alone.

Being part of this network reaffirms that trust is the new luxury and true quality respects both people and ecosystems.