GRTS has been developed based on decades of experience from the established Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). Until now, products outside GOTS’ organic fibre eligibility criteria had no equivalent certification route within the Global Standards system. GRTS meets a growing industry demand for a textile processing standard that defines environmental and human rights criteria for the processing and physical traceability of a broader range of fibres.

Claudia Kersten, Managing Director of Global Standards, said: “Following our mission as a non-profit Voluntary Sustainability Standard setter, we aim to ensure the highest level of social and environmental impact in textile value chains. GRTS is a strategic and exciting step for us. By offering a standard that covers fibres beyond organic and building it on the same system as GOTS, we support the industry's business case for sustainability and enable more positive impact together."

Independent third-party certification and physical traceability

GRTS sets defined environmental, chemical, human rights, business conduct, due diligence and traceability requirements. For fibres to enter the GRTS system, they must be certified to third-party fibre standards recognised by GRTS and meet social, ecological and traceability criteria, including the prohibition of highly hazardous chemicals and GMOs, chain of custody with identity preservation and the inclusion of social norms in fibre production, among others.

Certification is carried out by accredited independent third-party bodies and is required at every stage of processing and trading. Chain-of-custody requirements, transaction certificates and volume reconciliation support the verification of certified fibre content throughout the supply chain.

To qualify for GRTS certification, goods must contain at least 90% fibres certified to fibre standards recognised by GRTS. For companies already certified to GOTS, existing systems and procedures may make it easy for them to apply for and receive certification to GRTS.

GRTS is fully operational, with 27 independent certification bodies accredited to certify against the standard.

The new GRTS standard