Product Flows and GHG Emissions Associated with Consumer Returns in the EU

Abstract

Each year, consumers return billions of new products to retailers. Despite growing concern over product destruction, post-return product flows are not well understood, and the full lifecycle environmental impacts of returns remain largely unknown. Building on a unique dataset covering over 630k returned apparel items in the EU, we map the flow of returned products under sustainable and conventional management practices. We illustrate the full lifecycle impacts associated with returns using two fashion case studies. Our results indicate that 22%-44% of returned products never reach another consumer. Moreover, GHG emissions associated with the production and distribution of unused returns can be 2-14 times higher than post-return transport, packaging, and processing emissions combined. Our findings suggest that the environmental impacts of retail, and specifically eCommerce, may be systematically underestimated, and highlight the urgent need to promote circular management practices that can extend products lifetimes.

Keywords: eCommerce, consumer returns, product lifetime extension, textile destruction, fashion