The Global Organic Textile Standard GOTS announced that there are now fifty companies in the United States certified to GOTS. Ramblers Way Farm, Inc. of Kennebunk, Maine, manufacturer of garments made from GOTS certified organic wool, has become the fiftieth company to be added to the GOTS public database for the United States. Canada now has seven companies certified to the program. Consumers and retailers are invited to learn more about these companies on the GOTS public database at www.global-standard.org.

More than 3,800 facilities were certified to GOTS in 68 countries

GOTS is the stringent voluntary global standard for the entire post-harvest processing (including spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing) of apparel and home textiles made with organic fiber (such as organic cotton and organic wool), and the standard includes both environmental and social criteria.

Key provisions include a ban on the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), highly hazardous chemicals (such as azo dyes and formaldehyde), and child labor, while requiring strong social compliance management systems and strict wastewater treatment practices. In 2015, more than 3,800 facilities were certified to GOTS in 68 countries. The number of workers reported in 3,419 GOTS certified facilities exceeded 1,050,000, according to GOTS.

Background:

GOTS was developed by leading international standard setters - Organic Trade Association (U.S.), Japan Organic Cotton Association, International Association Natural Textile Industry (Germany), and Soil Association (UK), which formed an International Working Group to define globally recognized requirements that ensure the organic status of textiles. GOTS is recognized worldwide as the leading processing standard for textiles made with organic fibers. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) formally accepted GOTS for sale of textiles labeled as organic in the USA via its policy memorandum dated May 2011.

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