Textile ETP made the most of Techtextil-Texprocess 2026 with five guided innovation hub tours across both shows, a landmark presentation of the first SmartX strategy document on the future of EU technical textiles in defence, aerospace and protection, and a week of exchanges that bring industry reality and European funding opportunity into closer conversation.

On 14 April 2026, our Secretary General Lutz Walter participated in Pulp & Beyond, where he gave a keynote speech about the biobased fibre innovation opportunities in the EU textile market, highlighting that fossil-based fibres still account for 69% of global fibre production, and why a phase-out will be a long but necessary process.

‎Regularly, our Secretary General Lutz Walter shares his insights and knowledge through his blogposts, covering a wide range of topics related to textile sustainability and innovation. Follow his blog to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges that the textile industry is facing today.

To provide our members with first-hand insights into cutting-edge research, technologies, and sustainable innovations, we launched ‘Textile ETP on Tour’, an exclusive members-only initiative designed to showcase pioneering developments in textile science and technology. For the fourth edition on 23-24 March 2026, we visited the Lombardy region, in Italy, a premier European hub for technical textiles, blending 150 years of industrial tradition with advanced research in materials and sustainability.

Textile ETP is an official Supporting Organisation for ITMA 2027, the world's largest textile and garment technology exhibition, taking place 16-22 September 2027 in Hannover, Germany. Organisations working in research and education, or textile start-ups can access grant-backed participation opportunities at the show, with application deadlines coming up in 2026.

On 13 March 2026, Textile ETP Sustainability Programmes Manager Tilla Kross took the stage at the VERDEinMED final event in Thessaloniki, Greece, highlighting the ongoing work within the ECOSYSTEX, and outlining the core objectives of the PESCO-UP project.

Save the date for the fourth ECOSYSTEX Conference will take place as a physical event on 22-24 September in Antwerp, Belgium, in partnership with the University of Antwerp. This event will bring together experts, innovators, and industry leaders to explore circular textiles beyond recycling.

Registrations for the 20th Textile ETP Annual Conference 2026, taking place on 26-28 May in Amsterdam and hosted by the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, are now open! This year, the conference will focus on the digital transformation of the European textile and apparel industry, a pivotal topic shaping the future of the sector.

‎Regularly, our Secretary General Lutz Walter shares his insights and knowledge through his blogposts, covering a wide range of topics related to textile sustainability and innovation. Follow his blog to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges that the textile industry is facing today.

On 10 February, our Secretary General Lutz Walter participated in the Data Spaces Symposium 2026 in Madrid, contributing to the discussion on how regulatory requirements and technical complexity can be turned from barriers into enablers for the textile industry, supporting the creation of trusted and scalable data spaces for supply chain transparency, sustainability reporting, product traceability and compliance with emerging EU legislation.

On 9 February 2026, Textile ETP Secretary General Lutz Walter spoke at the EU Advanced Fermentation Conference on biotechnology for textiles, focusing on fermentation-driven materials and processes. The discussion highlighted how biobased textile innovations, from novel biopolymer-based fibres to bacterial or enzymatic processes for textile colouration or finishing, could transform textile production.

Textile ETP will be present every day at Techtextil and Texprocess at Booth F33 in Hall 12.1 (Techtextil side), and wil organise thematic tours for our Innovation Hubs' subscribers on 21-24 April 2026.