Texworld USA Introduces the Eco-Textile Labeling Guide

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Lost in "green" textiles? Heard of GOTS, Oeko-Tex, NOP, FLO or ILO but not sure what's behind it all? The Eco-Textile Labeling Guide provides valuable information about the latest organic textile standards and eco-textile certification including a number of ethical and fair trade standards. It is designed for manufacturers of textiles, apparel retailers and brands who want to find out which eco standards are most suitable for them and how to source products that have a minimal negative effect on the environment.

The Guide was researched, written and edited by Mowbray Communication Limited (MCL), publisher of Ecotextile News and published in partnership with Messe Frankfurt.

"Exhibitors and visitors at Texworld and Interstoff keep asking questions such as 'What kind of eco labels are there?'; 'What is the difference between them?'; 'Can I sell my organic cotton shirts in Europe and the US?'; 'What are the basic certification procedures?' 'What does it all cost'?" says Detlef Braun, Member of the Board of Management at Messe Frankfurt. "This book is a real reference tool which answers all these questions. To my knowledge it is the most comprehensive publication about eco-textile certification to date."

The guidebook is divided into four main sections.

Obligatory Organic Textile Standards
This chapter outlines the main legal standards for organic textiles in the USA, EU and Japan, e.g. USDA National Organic Programme (NOP), EU: 2092/91, Japanese Agricultural Standards (JAS).

Optional Organic Textile Standards
These organic standards are voluntary but have to be in accord with the obligatory standards outlined above. Standards like GOTS, OE 100 Blended, IWTO organic wool and others belong to that group.

Eco-Textile Standards
These standards do not incorporate organic standards but focus on textile production processes and consumer safety such as Oeko-Tex, Bluesign, Cradle to Cradle and other.

Ethical Production and Fair Trade
Environmental friendly production and social aspects often cannot be separated from each other. This chapter deals with social standards like ILO Labour Standards, FLO (Fairtrade labelling organisation), SA8000, Fairwear Foundation etc.

Also, the guidebook introduces important certification companies such as Control Union, IMO, OneCert Inc and others. A glossary at the end of the book explains technical terms. Tables and bullet points enable the reader to receive an overview at a glance and to easily compare the standards.

The guidebook will be available for the first time in North America at Texworld USA, February 3 – 5, 2009 for the price of $15 US.

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