Certifications for the fashion and lifestyle industry

Photo by Angèle Kamp on Unsplash

These days, it seems like all fashion and lifestyle companies are getting their textiles certified. And with good reason. Public eyes and attentive and conscious consumers have increased the need for documentation. Because without certifications, it’s difficult to say or claim anything.

With a valid certification you can safely communicate your actions and provide your consumers and stakeholders with traceability and enhanced transparency. And – it provides you with a wider security range than what would otherwise be possible.

The reasons for getting certified in textile industry are many, and the same can be said for the number of different certifications. Some might suit your company better than other.

Read our overview of the most common certifications used in the fashion and lifestyle industry below.

An overview of textile certifications

GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard)

GOTS certified products are widely popular, mostly in relation to cotton to ensure organic content and responsible social behaviour throughout the supply chain. It is one of the only certifications in the textile industry with a holistic approach to sustainability and is by many considered best practice. GOTS requires a certification throughout the supply chain, giving you traceability and transparency.

There are two GOTS standards: ‘GOTS organic’ and ‘GOTS made with x% organic’, depending on the level of organic content in the product.

Fibers available: cotton, hemp, linen, and wool.

OCS (Organic Content Standard)

OCS certified products ensure organic content as they require documentation of organic material throughout the production process. Materials in the products must originate from certified organic farms. As opposed to GOTS, OCS does not ensure social and environmental considerations and does not consider chemical input during the production processes. OCS certified products must therefore not be labelled as organic, but as containing organic content.

There are two OCS standards: ‘OCS 100’ and ‘OCS Blended’, depending on the level of organic content in the final product.

OEKO-TEX (STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®)

OEKO-TEX is one of the best known certifications for textiles without harmful substances. All components of products carrying this label have been tested by independent OEKO-TEX partner institutes for regulated and unregulated substances, which may be dangerous to human health. However, OEKO-TEX does not ensure organic production. An OEKO-TEX certified product can also be 100% polyester.

The limit values for the harmful substances depend on the class of the product. There are four classes of OEKO-TEX certified products. The most strict limits apply to products for babies and those which have contact with skin.

FSC (Forest Steward Councilship)

The FSC® Chain of Custody certification certifies responsibly sourced wood fibers and applies to a wide range of wood-based products, from paper and home decor to materials like viscose. In FSC-certified forests there are strict standards for responsible forest management with respect for biodiversity and natural habitats, indigenous peoples’ and surrounding communities’ right to free access to the forest and working conditions.

The two most applied claims are FSC 100% and FSC MIX, which are applicable for products with respectively 100% and at minimum 70% certified wood material. The FSC certification does not address any processes downstream the value chain, e.g. social and environmental issues during processing and manufacturing.

GRS (Global Recycle Standard)

GRS certifies the recycled content of a product, basically meaning that they ensure that it is in fact recycled. In addition, the GRS also holds social and environmental processing criteria and chemical restrictions. The entire supply chain needs to be audited, to ensure that the recycled material is kept apart from virgin materials.

RCS (Recycled Claim Standard)

RCS certifies the recycled content of a product. Unlike GRS, RCS does not take into account social, environmental processing nor does it have any chemical restriction within the production process. The entire supply chain needs to be audited, to ensure that the recycled material is kept apart from virgin materials.

RDS (Responsible Down Standard), RWS (Responsible Wool Standard), RMS (Responsible Mohair Standard), and RAS (Responsible Alpaca Standard)

RDS, RWS, RMS and RAS - the four 'responsible' certifications - certify a fair and responsible treatment of the respective animals, ensuring that they are not subjected to any unnecessary harm. The entire supply chain must be audited to ensure that the responsible material is not mixed with conventional.

Yes, there are more certifications, way more than we could list in this article. But we have made sure to include the most common certifications for fashion and lifestyle companies.

Getting certified is not easy. It can be pricey, and it will not happen overnight. In fact, it can take many months from getting started to getting your license. Therefore – you better get started. And if you want to avoid some typical beginner mistakes, you can always count on specialists from Sustainawear – we would love to guide you and support you during the certification process.

Sounds interesting? Find out more here.