Introduction
20 years ago, environmental protection was a concept; 10 years ago, it was an opinion; now, it’s the starting line. Without environmental protection, it’s as if we had not even started. Why do I have to say so?
The environmental damage caused by industrial manufacturing has affected everyone’s daily life and personal health, as well as the living environment of marine life.
To prevent waste from ending up in landfills and to enable recycling on Earth, thereby reducing the overexploitation of energy, all humanity is advocating for the use of recycled and environmentally friendly materials and products. In particular, the younger generation has a stronger environmental awareness and prioritizes environmentally friendly products when shopping. Whether a product is environmentally friendly has directly influenced their purchasing behavior.
These years has seen the rapid rise of the circular economy, but there is still much room for improvement. Any product design needs to begin with an environmentally sustainable strategy. As consumers begin to weigh their needs and desires more frequently, successful product design will increasingly focus on minimizing climate impact and waste while maximizing value at every stage of the product lifecycle.
To demonstrate our professionalism and authority in environmental protection, we have actively applied for and obtained relevant environmental recycling certifications in the textile industry. Are you familiar with GOTS, GRS, Bluesign, and BSCI certifications?
1, GOTS Organic Certification
Certified products must contain more than 70% organic ingredients, including organic cotton, organic linen, organic silk, etc.
Since its launch in 2006, GOTS has proven its practical viability. The purpose of GOTS standard certification is to ensure the standardization of organic textiles from harvesting to raw materials, processing and final product packaging, so as to bring trustworthy products to the end consumer.
This new and unique certification regulation requires textile manufacturers to regulate the production of their organic textiles and apparel according to globally recognized standards, which is an important step toward harmonizing and making textile labeling more transparent.
2, Organic Certification OCS
Organic Content Standard
Suitable for products containing more than 5% organic raw materials
OCS 100 (contains 95%~100% organic ingredients)
OCS Blended (containing 5%-95% organic components)
The US nonprofit organization Textile Exchange has launched a new organic certification standard, the Organic Content Standard, which regulates the entire organic supply chain by tracking the cultivation of organic raw materials.
OCS is an international, voluntary standard that can be applied to all non-food products containing 5%-100% organic ingredients, setting requirements for third-party certification of organic inputs and the chain of custody.
It provides the industry with a tool to verify the organic ingredients in the products they purchase, provides companies with a trusted tool to communicate claims about organic farming practices to the industry, and provides organic fiber farmers with broad access to the global organic market.
3, Recycling Certification (GRS)
Global Recycled Standard
GRS was originally established by Global Certification (CU) in 2008 and has been sought after by global brands and consumers since its inception.
The Global Recycling Standard applies to any product containing at least 20% recycled materials. Starting from the recycling stage, each stage of production must be certified and ultimately end with the final seller in a business-to-business transaction. Material collection and material concentration sites require self-declaration, document collection, and on-site visits.
4, Recycled Certification RCS
Recycled Content Standard
Applicable to products containing more than 5% recycled raw materials
RCS100 (containing 95%~100% recycled components)
RCS Blended (containing 5%-95% recycled components)
The purpose of RCS certification is to ensure that products contain recycled materials, so that consumers can be assured that the products they buy contain recycled materials because they have chosen products made from recycled materials. This certification helps to increase the use of recycled materials and reduce waste.
5, Bluesign certification
Bluesign: Blue Label Certification
Blue Label Certification, established in 2000 and headquartered in Switzerland, is an extremely stringent environmental standard certification for textiles, representing environmental safety throughout the entire production chain, including environmental certification for consumers, production workers, and waste emissions.
Textile brands and products bearing trademarks authorized by this company represent that their manufacturing processes and products comply with eco-friendly, healthy, and safe standards.
6, ISO 9001 Quality Management System Certification
ISO9001: Quality system certification
The ISO 9001 quality management system is defined as: a management system that directs and controls an organization with respect to quality, which typically includes activities such as setting quality policies and objectives, as well as quality planning, quality control, quality assurance and quality improvement.
ISO 9001 certification is used to demonstrate an organization’s ability to provide products that meet customer requirements and applicable regulatory requirements, with the aim of increasing customer satisfaction.
7, Fair Trade Certification
Fair Trade is a strategy for sustainable development and poverty reduction, creating opportunities for economically disadvantaged or marginalized producers in traditional trade systems.
Fair Trade’s “Factory Production Standards” serve workers in factories that produce various products such as clothing, footwear, and home furnishings, based on the following four key areas of impact:
① Worker participation: Workers are able to effectively represent themselves when negotiating with management on improving working conditions and working with factory management to enhance the participation of all workers.
② Economic Development: Workers earn Fair Trade Welfare Fund, which is paid by the purchaser and managed by the Fair Trade Workers Welfare Management Group. The workers collectively decide how to spend it on identified worker and community needs.
③ Social Responsibility: The factory is committed to protecting basic human rights, maintaining internationally recognized labor standards, and providing better benefits for workers, in line with or exceeding departmental regulations, regional averages and official minimum employment conditions, and implementing health and safety measures to minimize work-related accidents and illnesses.
④ Environmental Responsibility: The factory strives to mitigate the harmful environmental impact of its production, particularly in the management of waste and hazardous chemicals. Other environmental issues covered include energy use, water and exhaust emissions.
8, BSCI Social Responsibility Certification
BSCI: Social responsibility certification
BSCI stands for Business Social Compliance Initiative, a certification program initiated by the European Foreign Trade Association (amfori). Currently, more than 2,000 member buyers worldwide adhere to a common code of conduct and are committed to improving working conditions in the global supply chain.
BSCI certification refers to a social responsibility audit conducted by an organization that advocates for social responsibility in the business community on the global suppliers of BSCI member organizations. The audit mainly covers issues such as: worker health and safety, freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, prohibition of discrimination, prohibition of child labor, prohibition of forced labor, compliance with laws, working hours, fair pay, and the environment.
9, Higg Index Social Responsibility Assessment
Higg Index: Social responsibility assessment and certification
The Higg Index is a sustainability tool designed to assess the environmental and social impact of apparel and footwear products. It was launched by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), an industry group whose members cover more than one-third of the global apparel and footwear market.
The Higg Index Facility Environmental module (Higg FEM) is one of the three Higg Index validation frameworks. It is primarily used by manufacturers and factories to conduct a self-assessment annually and then select an SAC-accredited third-party validation body to perform the validation. It uses practical and qualitative questions to assess the performance of environmental sustainability, thereby driving manufacturers to make improvements. The Higg Index assessment validated by accredited assessors can enhance supply chain systems and customer trust.
10, OEKO-TEX Standard 100
OEKO-TEX Standard 100 was established in 1992 by the OEKO-TEX International Association for Environmentally Friendly Textiles. There are now 16 testing associations whose main task is to test textiles for harmful substances to determine their safety.
It is now the most widely used eco-label for textiles. The OEKO-TEX Standard 100 standard sets limits on the content of harmful substances in yarns, fibers and various textiles based on the latest scientific knowledge. Only manufacturers that provide verifiable quality assurance through strict testing and inspection procedures are allowed to use the OEKO-TEX label on their products.
11, EU ECO CERT Organic Certification
Founded in 1991, the French International Ecocertification Centre (ECOCERT SA) is one of the largest organic certification bodies in the world.
ECO CERT’s rigorous quality assessment and certification procedures ensure that any product bearing the ECO CERT certification mark is a guarantee of high quality and credibility, recognized and admired by environmentally conscious and organic consumers worldwide.
ECO CERT certification guarantees:
- Environmentally friendly production and processing also respect human health;
- The development of the concept of green chemicals;
- Use natural resources responsibly;
- Respect biodiversity;
- Free of parabens, phenoxyethanol, fragrances, and synthetic dyes;
- Recyclable packaging;
Acgreen consistently practices the concept of green and sustainable development, obtaining organic, recycled and environmentally friendly certifications to meet globally recognized standards. This ensures that everything from raw material harvesting to product processing and sales fully complies with the standards, enhancing product value, providing consumers with reliable products, and ensuring that our hemp organic textile products can be sold freely in markets around the world.
Originating from nature, giving back to nature, being responsible to society and the environment—we have been striving for this.