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Oeko-Tex is a registered trade mark, representing the product labels and company certifications issued, and other services provided by the International Association for Research and Testing in the Field of Textile and Leather Ecology (which also calls itself Oeko-Tex for short).

Oeko-Tex labels and certificates confirm the human-ecological safety of textile products and leather articles from all stages of production (raw materials and fibers, yarns, fabrics, ready-to-use end products) along the textile and leather value chain. Some also attest to socially and environmentally sound conditions in production facilities.[1]

History

The Oeko-Tex Association was founded in March 1992. The founding members were the Austrian Textile Research Institute (now ÖTI – Institute for Ecology, Technology and Innovation) (ÖTI (de)) and the German Hohenstein Institute. The Swiss textile testing institute Testex joined in 1993. Other European and Asian testing and research institutes joined in the following years. In 2016, the association reached its current membership count of 17.[2]

In the first year of operation, Oeko-Tex launched Oeko-Tex Standard 100. It emerged from the Schadstoffgeprüft nach ÖTN 100 (tested for harmful substances according to ÖTN 100), developed by OETI in 1989 to address increasing public interest in textile ecology and health.[1] In 1995, Oeko-Tex Standard 1000 was launched, which included sustainability aspects that were later demanded in the areas of quality and environmental management.[3][4] This was followed by the establishment of the Oeko-Tex Standard 100plus. It was based on the Standard 100, but also examined the production processes. Prerequisite to be awarded the Standard 100plus was to be certified with Standard 100 and Standard 1000.[5][6]

Standard 1000 was scrutinized at the beginning of the 2000s and significantly revised by adding social aspects and occupational safety.[7] As a result, in 2013, Oeko-Tex launched the STeP (Sustainable Textile Production) certification system for sustainable textile production. It is awarded to environmentally friendly and socially responsible companies.[4] Two years later, Oeko-Tex introduced the Made in Green label, which replaced the Oeko-Tex Standard 100plus and the Spanish Made in Green by Aitex labels. To do so, Oeko-Tex acquired exclusive rights to the Made in Green label. The label certifies textiles that have been manufactured in an environmentally friendly and socially responsible manner.[8][9]

In 2016, all Oeko-Tex labels and logos underwent a design change. The lettering "Confidence in Textiles" replaced the slogan "Textiles Vertrauen", which had been used for the Standard 100 since it was founded.[10] Since the same year, the association has been offering the Detox to Zero service, which allows brands and retailers to meet the requirements of Greenpeace’s Detox campaign. It enables manufacturers along the textile supply chain to assess the status of their chemical management systems and the quality of their wastewater and sewage sludge.[11] Also in 2016, Oeko-Tex introduced the Eco Passport label for sustainable textile chemicals.[12] In 2017, Oeko-Tex introduced the Leather Standard certificate for leather goods that have been tested for harmful substances.[2][13]

In 2020, Oeko-Tex redesigned and optimized its website. It introduced the Oeko-Tex Label Check tool to check the validity of all labels and track the manufacture of Made-in-Green-labeled products. A dedicated WeChat channel was introduced in China.[14]

In addition to the Impact Calculator launched in January 2022, which helps STeP certified production facilities reduce their carbon emissions and water consumption, in autumn 2022, Oeko-Tex introduced the Responsible Business label. The management process certification and the tool are intended to help brands and retailers meet the requirements for due diligence in the textile and leather industry supply chain.[15][16]

In 2023, Oeko-Tex launched the certification Organic Cotton.[17][18]

Concept

The Oeko-Tex Association offers standardized solutions that companies in the textile and leather industry can use to make their manufacturing processes transparent and more sustainable. The Oeko-Tex standards are developed as a modular system to cover the textile and leather value chain in terms of input, process, and output control as well as supply chain management. The aim is to enable producers and consumers to make responsible decisions and protect natural resources.[19] The testing system is based on environmental performance audits of textile production sites, testing in laboratories as well as evaluation of textile products for their environmental sound production.[20]

Oeko-Tex partners with initiatives such as Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) for promoting sustainable chemical management. It is a member of the International Social and Environmental Accreditation and Labelling Alliance (ISEAL) (ISEAL Alliance (de)) to reinforce efforts to tackle the textile industry's challenges and improve transparency.[16]

Oeko-Tex labels operate in line with several Sustainable Development Goals. For example, Good Health & Well-Being (SDG 3) and Clean Water & Sanitation (SDG 6) are reflected in the STeP factory certification, and Responsible Consumption & Production (SDG 12) and Climate Action (SDG 13) are implemented through the Made In Green product label.[15]

The introduction of the Standard 100 established a globally standardized quality assurance system for brands, retailers and manufactures, considering the decreased vertical range of manufacture in the individual facilities of the textile and clothing industry, and compensating for regionally different evaluation standards for the risk potential of harmful substances. The limit values and testing methods, on which Standard 100 is based, were internationally standardized and are adapted to the latest scientific findings and legislation at least once a year – a principle that is applied to all Oeko-Tex standards.[15][21][22] The aim of the STeP certification is to provide production facilities with targeted support for the continuing optimization of their manufacturing technologies and working conditions under the aim of more environmental protection, workplace safety and social responsibility.[4] The STeP label is not meant to be displayed on products, but rather to be used in business-to-business communication. Given the locally different legislative regulations, STeP acts as a tool to render the sustainability and social achievements of textile and leather facilities comparable across national borders.

Operations

The Oeko-Tex Association is headquartered in Zürich (Switzerland).[1] The association includes 17 test and research institutes in Europe and Japan, with offices in over 70 countries around the world (as of 2023).[23]

Oeko-Tex awards:

Most Oeko-Tex certification is conducted through the Standard 100 label. Within this standard, most articles tested are articles worn close to the skin in product class II (53% of all certificates), followed by baby articles in product class I (43%) as well as furnishing materials (3%, product class IV) and textiles without direct contact with the skin (1%, product class III) (as of 2011).[24] In the 2018/19 fiscal year, the association awarded more than 21,000 Standard 100 certificates in over 104 countries. This was followed by around 1,333 products that were awarded the Made in Green label. In addition, 140 companies were certified in accordance with STeP. China is the country with the most STeP-certified companies, followed by Bangladesh and Pakistan, and then Turkey, followed by India.[9] In the 2022/23 fiscal year, Oeko-Tex issued more than 43,000 certificates and labels.[16] 21,000 manufacturers, brands and trading companies in more than 100 countries are working with the association and its labels and certifications (as of 2023).[19]

The Standard 100 is a product label for textiles tested for harmful substances with the largest prevalence worldwide. A consumer survey, conducted by the Institut für Handelsforschung GmbH, revealed that Oeko-Tex is one of the world's best-known textile labels. 42% of all respondents in 13 countries, including Germany, China and Russia, were familiar with the label. In Germany, the label had a recognition level of 70%.[3]

Oeko-Tex certificates

Oeko-Tex Standard 100

The Standard 100 product label, introduced (as Oeko-Tex Standard 100) in 1992, certifies adherence to the specifications of the standard by the same name, a document of testing methods and limit values for potentially harmful chemicals. This testing and certification system may be applied to textile materials, intermediate products at all stages of production and ready-made textile articles. After successful testing, installing a sufficient quality control system and issuing a conformity declaration, a license for using the registered label can be granted.[20] Examples of eligible items for certification are raw and dyed finished yarns, raw and dyed finished fabrics and knits, and consumer goods (all types of clothing, home and household textiles, bed linen, terry cloth items, textile toys and more).[25] Once issued, the Standard 100 certificate is valid for one year. The extent and requirements of Oeko-Tex testing for harmful substances depend on the intended use of a textile product. There are four product classes:[24]

Oeko-Tex STeP

STeP (Sustainable Textile and Leather Production) is a worldwide certification system for environmentally friendly and socially responsible production facilities in the textile, leather and clothing industry. It is a 2013 re-branding of the Oeko-Tex Standard 1000 that had been introduced in 1995 and provides brands, retail companies and manufacturers with an option for modular analysis of all relevant company areas such as quality management, use of chemicals, environmental protection, environmental management, social responsibility and occupational health and safety.[4] Once issued, the STeP certificate is valid for three years.[4][16][26]

Oeko-Tex Made in Green

Made in Green is a label for textile and leather products. The label certifies the testing of textile products for harmful substances and materials, as well as production in environmentally friendly factories and in safe and socially responsible workplaces.[27][28][29] Specifically, the textile or leather product must have undergone successful testing for compliance with the requirements of the Standard 100, Leather Standard or Organic Cotton, and the product as well as the majority of its components and predecessors must have been produced by companies that have been audited and STeP certified by Oeko-Tex. The Made in Green label replaced the former Oeko-Tex Standard 100plus label in 2015.[9][26] A unique product ID and/or QR code on the Made in Green label enables consumers to trace the production of the labelled article.[8][30] The Made in Green label expires after one year, and brands or manufacturers need to apply for renewal of the label.[31] The label is in accordance with several global regulations, including EU REACH directive and the ECHA-SVHC candidate list.[32]

Oeko-Tex Eco Passport

Eco Passport is a certification system for textile and leather chemicals (e.g., colorants, optical brighteners, antistatic agents, adhesives, cleaning agents), through which producers of textile and leather processing chemicals and chemical compounds can corroborate that their products are suitable for sustainable textile and leather production. The program features three sequential assessments, and products that pass all three steps are granted the Eco Passport certification. This label allows for those products to be used in Standard-100-certified products and by STeP-certified manufacturing plants.[12][16] The Eco Passport label can be issued to producers, traders, and resellers of chemicals and is valid for one year. It works in compliance with several regulations including EU REACH.[33]

Oeko-Tex Leather Standard

The Leather Standard (introduced 2017) is a system of testing methods, testing criteria and limit values for harmful substances used by the Oeko-Tex member institutes to globally certify the human-ecological safety of leather products: semi-finished leather materials ("Wet blue" – chrome-tanned hides, "Wet white" – vegetable tanned hides), leather, bonded leather and ready-made leather articles. When certifying leather products contain non-leather (e.g. textile or metallic) components, the requirements of the Leather Standard are combined with those of the Standard 100.[13] Certification according to the Leather Standard is valid for one year.[34]

The Leather Standard defines the same four product classes as the Standard 100. Both also employ very similar catalogues of limit values for potentially harmful chemicals. However, the limit values for Chromium are higher, since industrially produced leather is predominantly chrome-tanned.[35]

Oeko-Tex Organic Cotton

Fashion and textile products with the Organic Cotton label are made with organic cotton, grown without GMOs (genetically modified organisms) or pesticides, and were tested for other harmful substances. For the label, Oeko-Tex developed a method that can test quantitatively for genetically modified organisms.[36] For verification of organic origin, Oeko-Tex’s GMO quantification method differentiates between contamination and purposeful mixing of conventional cotton. The certification works in compliance with several regulations including EU REACH Annex XIV and XVII, US CPSIA (lead) and EU POP regulation.[16][17][18] The Oeko-Tex standards are modeled after the organic cotton standards by IFOAM – Organics International.[37]

Oeko-Tex Responsible Business

Responsible Business is a certification for brands and retailers committed to international agreements for human rights and environmental protection. Responsible Business was developed in accordance with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct.[38] Responsible Business was a response to an increasing global expectation of compliance with due diligence obligations and has been supporting textile and leather companies since November 2022 in preventing existing and potentially negative impacts of their own business operations, supply chains and other business relationships.[16]

Other services

Oeko-Tex Detox to Zero

Detox to Zero is a service that assesses the quality of a textile manufacturer's chemical management, chemicals used and waste water and sludge performance. The Detox to Zero status report is not a certificate, but a way for manufacturers to have their efforts towards reaching the goals of the Greenpeace Detox campaign verified, evaluated and documented by an independent institution.[39][40][41] The Detox to Zero assessment evaluates the professional and transparent management of chemicals, the reduction respectively elimination of harmful substances from the production process and the quality of waste water and sludge.[11] Since 2020, Detox To Zero is an obligatory element for STeP-certified facilities using large quantities of water and chemicals.[42] The resulting Detox to Zero status reports are valid for one year.

Oeko-Tex Label Check

Oeko-Tex Label Check is a website that checks the validity of the Oeko-Tex labels through QR codes and product codes.[43] It provides information about the supply chain of textile or leather products, for example details about the location and type of the production facilities and their certifications.[44][45]

Certification process and control tests

Oeko-Tex testing institutes conduct standardized testing in controlled conditions to verify and back up claims. Companies can apply for product and process certifications. Product certifications look at harmful substances on finished goods, product components, input materials, quality management and intended use. Process certifications examine quality management systems, social responsibility, health and safety, chemical management, wastewater management, environmental management and environmental performance.[46]

To have a textile or leather product certified by Oeko-Tex, manufacturers must supply samples of all components (including accessories like buttons, zips, studs, sewing threads, labels, or prints) for analysis to a laboratory at one of the member institutes. The certificate is issued after successful testing of the materials for compliance with the Oeko-Tex standards and the signing of a declaration of conformity. Part of the certification process is also a company audit at the certified item's production facility, conducted shortly prior or after the issuing of the certificate.[47]

To verify continued compliance with the required limit values, the Oeko-Tex Association carries out annual checks for at least 25% of all issued Standard 100 and Leather Standard certificates.[48][49] These checks involve unannounced company visits and laboratory tests of labelled product samples acquired from stores and production sites. Current information about withdrawn certificates is provided on the Oeko-Tex website.[50]

After a company applies for a label, Oeko-Tex assesses to what extent they are showing sustainable management. The assessment is carried out online and the final audit is given in form of a transparent 3-stage scoring system. The precondition for the STeP certification is the compliance with certain minimum requirements, which will be verified during the auditing of the production facilities by one of the Oeko-Tex institutes. Previous certifications such as ISO 14001, EMAS for environmental management, and others for social responsibility as well as ISO 9000 standards for quality management can be integrated into the STeP certification so that evidence does not have to be provided multiple times.[4]

Institutes

The following institutes belong to the International Association for Research and Testing in the Field of Textile Ecology (Oeko-Tex):[23]

Bibliography

References

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