Bombyx, a division of Profits Fund Global Holding (PFG), announced it has completed the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), Global Recycling Standard (GRS) and Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) certifications at its Hong Kong trading office.
These accreditations are in addition to the company’s existing GOTS, GRS, and RCS certifications at its cut and sew factory and organic certification at its mulberry farms. The GOTS, GRS, and RCS accreditations achieved by Bombyx verify the products’ chain of custody from dyeing, finishing and manufacturing through trading operations.
Currently, customers can purchase organic certified raw silk fibers and cocoons directly from the Bombyx farms, GOTS silk woven fabrics and recycled women’s apparel through the trading office in Hong Kong.
This comes as GOTS, 20 years after its inception, said it has recorded all-time high figures, with 18 GOTS approved certification bodies reporting 12,338 certified facilities, a 19 percent yearly increase, in 79 countries, up 11 percent.
Among the countries with the largest increase in GOTS certified facilities in 2021 were Turkey, up 61 percent to 1,799; Italy, a 53 percent rise to 894; Germany, a 19 percent increase to 817; Portugal, up 35 percent to 608; France, a 22 percent gain to 122; Denmark, rising 14 percent to 115; Switzerland, increasing 15 percent to 61; Belgium, up 55 percent to 59; Sweden gaining 34 percent to 51, and Vietnam, jumping 264 percent to 51.
“What seemed utopian to many in 2002 has become a reality in the past 20 years,” Claudia Kersten, a managing director at GOTS, said. “We have created an organic textile standard, certified by approved certification bodies, which is accepted in all major markets. GOTS is a standard that gives consumers the power to choose truly organic products sourced from sustainable supply chains. Despite ongoing difficulties and uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, decision-makers continue to pursue their sustainability goals and value GOTS as a tool to accomplish them.”
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The results of the annual GOTS survey among certified entities showed this. Out of 1,114 respondents, 63 percent indicated a permanent shift in their sustainability strategy with a focus on the environment and health of their workers and staff. Growing interest from industry, the public and the media drove website visits up 48 percent. Media exposure grew 64 percent and GOTS social media followers across several platforms increased 57 percent.
“As much as we are pleased with the development so far, we don’t intend to rest on our laurels,” said Rahul Bhajekar, a managing director at GOTS. “In March 2022, we begin revision for GOTS version 7.0 involving all stakeholders including associations, organizations, companies and individuals to further advance the progressive, innovative, stringent yet practical standard of GOTS.”
GOTS is a stringent voluntary global standard for the entire post-harvest processing, including spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing, of apparel and home textiles made with certified organic fiber such as organic cotton and organic wool, and includes environmental and social criteria. Key provisions include a ban on the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), highly hazardous chemicals and child labor, while requiring strong social compliance management systems and strict waste water treatment practices. GOTS is a non-profit organization that is self-financed.