Eco Yarn Labels: Sustainability Certification

Many yarn manufacturers have started to certify their yarns in the recent years. However, as you are aware of from other areas of your life, too quickly too many green labels and nice sounding words start flying around, that make it difficult to know if they are official certifications and what do they stand for. Unfortunately greenwashing is a cross-industry theme.

How do you know if the yarn you are buying is a sustainable yarn? What do you have to look out for and where do you get that information? This post will provide you with a quick reference guide on the main certifications.

What eco labels will tell you:

1. Organic Certification: ensuring no synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, or GMOs

2. Fair Trade Certification: ethical standards for workers

3. Sustainability Certification: preserving natural resources

4. Mulesing-Free Certification: cruelty-free wool production

5. B Corporation & OEKO-TEX Certifications: rigorous social & environmental performance standards

Eco labels to watch out for when yarn shopping

RWS

(Responsible Wool Standard)

RWS is a global certification by the Farm Animal Welfare Council that strictly prohibits mulesing and ensures that the sheep of all breeds have been treated with respect to their Five Freedoms (1. of hunger, 2. of discomfort, 3. of pain/injury/disease, 4. to express natural behaviour, 5. from fear and distress). Furthermore it ensures best practices in the management and protection of the land.

NWD

(National Wool Declaration)

Since Australia is one of the world’s leading wool producers it is great to see that the country has declared a nation wide program that includes the ban of mulesing. I recommend reading What is mulesing to understand the importance of that declaration.

RMS

(Responsible Mohair Standard)

The RMS certification recognizes farming best practices and ensures that mohair comes from farms that take a progressive approach to land management and respect the Five Freedoms of animal welfare.

RAS

(Responsible Alpaca Standard)

The RAS is a global certification focusing on the alpaca welfare protection, land health preservation and social welfare protection. Same as the RWS it ensures that the Five Freedoms of animal welfare are protected.

GOTS

(Global Organic Textile Standard)

Certification relating to the theme of biodiversity, well-being and the lowest possible environmental impact in production.

OEKO-TEX

It is one of the worlds most known labels for textiles and fibres tested for harmful substances. The label itself states, that the testing goes even beyond national and international requirements and that the testing criteria catalogue gets updated at least once a year.

I am linking below a good source to continue your education journey if you want to read more about eco labels beyond the ones that I have briefly touched on. It is the largest global directory of eco labels across 199 countries. And did I already mention that there are 456 eco labels listed on that index?

I am aware that it is not common practice to display such labels on the yarn yet, therefore a little research of the yarn brand before making the next purchase is a good way to start to educate yourself.

I hope this little guide helps you to know what to look out for and to ask the right questions. By being cognizant of those certifications, we can make informed yarn purchase decisions and can be sure that the yarn we use is produced in a way that is respectful to the environment and animals.

Let me know how you approach sustainable yarn shopping and if you like to read more in depth on that topic.