INFLUENCING SUSTAINABILITY – BUT HOW?

Influencing sustainability in the textile industry is one of the core goals of the Global Standard Non-Profit Organisation. By being the world’s leading processing Standard for textiles made from organic fibres, GOTS provides a quality assurance system for producers as well as consumers. But how can brands and other stakeholders in the supply chain make sure that “sustainability” is discussed on consumer level? Given the fact that online sales are booming and ‘new’ media marketing is in trend, mass media channels such as fashion blogs, YouTube channels and Instagram accounts are an interesting topic to explore the question how sustainability can develop from niche to norm.
Therefore, GOTS representative Lina Pfeifer has invited two experts with relevant knowledge in this field: blogger and Youtuber Verena Erin Polowy from "mygreencloset", as well as Thekla Wilkening, the co-founder of "Kleiderei", a clothing rental service.

The discussion will be an open round with the possibility for questions and will take place at the Ethical Fashion Show in Berlin (Kraftwerk), on January 17^th 11 a.m.

GOTS also will be present with a booth (B40E) and we look forward to meeting you there or contact for questions or comments.

GOTS to Present at Panel Discussion on Organic Textiles during Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics

GOTS at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City

North American GOTS representative, Lori Wyman was a panelist on the Sustainable Standards segment of the Sustainability and Textiles - New Models seminar at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City in June. This is an annual four-day series of lectures, panels, and hands-on workshops focusing on sustainability and technology in fashion and textiles. It was attended by 43 participants who were designers, educators, and others involved in creation or production of fashion and textiles, as well as retailers from several countries.

Also on the panel were Katina Boutis, the sustainability director at Loomstate, which is a GOTS Certified company in the U.S. and Anna Czerwinska, the head of marketing and communication from the International OEKO-TEX® Association. Each panelist gave a presentation, then there was an engaging question and answer period. Firstly, people wanted to know what is the difference between the GOTS and OEKO-TEX standards. For the most part, these two groups work hand-in-hand as the testing’s division of OEKO-TEX provides a great benchmark for allowable inputs in the GOTS standard. Secondly, Ms. Wyman pointed out that GOTS is a standard is applied only to natural fibers and verifies organic practices from the farm, through the entire supply chain to the end product. Whereas OECLO-TEX standards may apply to synthetic and genetically modified based fibers. Ms. Boutis described her company’s journey to make uniforms from organically sourced cotton and the benefits of being certified to GOTS. 

GOTS at Ecocert China Seminar

From April 19-21, ECOCERT China held a three day seminar on organic textiles in Xiamen, China. Felicia Shi, GOTS Representative for Greater China was invited to give a lecture as the first speaker on the first day.

Felicia firstly introduced the overview to organic textiles, then she talked about the latest market trends of organic textiles such as how brands embed sustainability as their core strategy, after that, she gave a brief introduction about GOTS standard, what's more, she presented the lasted updates at GOTS for example the promotional activities of GOTS worldwide and GOTS China. In addition, she illustrated the organic labelling globally, last but not the least, she showed how GOTS licensing and Labelling work for the facilities. 

Over 50 participants attended the seminar, including brands such as C&A, H&M, as well as OCS and GOTS certified processors and manufacturers.

Organic Textile Labeling in the U.S. Webinar

To be held twice on Tuesday, April 11, 2017:

• 10 AM Eastern, 3 PM GMT, 4 PM CET, and 10 PM China
• 12 Noon Pacific, 2 PM Central, and 3 PM Eastern

Learn more about US regulations in organic textile labeling, different kinds of organic claims, and how the Organic Content Standard and Global Organic Textile Standard can be used to help support your communication on product.

 The Organic Trade Association’s Vice President of Regulatory & Technical Affairs, Gwendolyn Wyard will cover the US’s regulations for organic labeling, with a focus on textiles. Lori Wyman, the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) North American Representative, will explain GOTS and what claims can be made for GOTS certified organic products. Textile Exchange’s Ashley Gill will cover the Organic Cotton Standard (OCS) and raw material content claims.

Link to this free event: https://www.ota.com/programs-and-events/ota-calendar

GOTS at ‘BESTSELLER Mill Day on Sustainability’

India office of Danish Brand BESTSELLER organized a one day event titled ‘BESTSELLER Mill Day on Sustainability’ on 24^th March 2017 in New Delhi, India. Mr. Sumit Gupta, GOTS Deputy Director Standards Development & Quality Assurance, was invited to speak about the “Global Organic Textile Standard - Introduction & Technical Criteria”.

Mr. Gupta explained the technical aspects of the Standard related to fibre usage, dyes/ chemical approval, environment, social compliance, labelling, packaging, etc. He also explained the traceability system in GOTS and Transaction Certificates (TC). He further told about the option of covering multiple shipments in a single TC and the newly introduced exclusion for wholly owned subsidiaries of a retailer.

He opined that brands can use GOTS as a benchmark to build a sustainable supply chain. They can either encourage their existing suppliers to follow GOTS or can choose from existing GOTS certified suppliers, that are listed on GOTS Public Database.

The audience comprised mainly of garmenting companies and wet processing units from India.