Control Union's New Recycled Textile Standard

Original Post Here: Control Union revises new recycled textile standard

NETHERLANDS-Control Union (CU) has issued a brand new version of its – of its brand new recycled fibers standard – with quite some changes to the story we broke EARLIER in full collaboration with CU.

As we went to press, Control Union contacted us urgently to say a new version of the Global Recycling Standard (GRS) has just been released that now focuses firmly on the percentage of pre- and post-consumer recycled content of a textile product instead of the previously announced three tier gold, silver and bronze system, which would have seen products classified simply by percentage of recycled raw materials.

As was pointed out to CU, the amount of post- and pre-consumer recycled content in a product is important to retailers so they can present a fully transparent story to consumers. Additionally, under a tiered system based on content alone it would be possible that a textile with a very high level of recycled cotton (for example 50%) to be graded alongside a fibre product with only 50% recycled polyester. Most recycled polyester fibres are at least 95% recycled content.

“It could also mean that a fibre producer could spin low grade fibre and then melt recycle into new fibre that meets the ‘gold standard’ (which previously stated more than 95% content),” said one industry insider.

So in the re-launch document for the Global Recycling Standard CU has worked closely with the industry to ensure GRS products will now be categorised based on the amount of pre- and/or post consumer recycled raw materials they contain. This amount is expressed as a percentage with a minimum of 5% content and the wording on GRS labelled products must say: “Made with recycled [raw material] – X% pre-consumer and X% post-consumer .”

The new GRS version also has strict provision for how internal waste is handled during the production process.

More on this story in the December issue of Ecotextile News. CLICK HERE to subscribe.

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