eco labels

Eco labels

R.B.Chavan Department of Textile Technology

Indian Institute of TechnologyHauz-Khas, New Delhi 110016

rbchavan@hotmail.com

THE NEED FOR AN ECO-LABEL

Consumers concern for adverse impacts of industrial pollution on the environment health.

Mounting pressure on industry to adopt “eco-friendly” chemicals and manufacturing processes particularly in the textile sector.

Eco-labels that certify the “eco-friendliness” of the textile product are now increasingly demanded by consumers.

Currently, these are required mainly in Western Europe, with Germany being the most demanding

Removal of tariff barriers under the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Tariff and Trade in 2005,

Exporters facing more stringent environmental standards in the international marketplace.

Manufacturers wishing to protect their existing markets and expand into new ones may well be required to obtain an eco-label that is acceptable to their client.

Experience in developing country has shown that without an eco-label:

· some buyer preferences were being directed elsewhere;

· where this was not the case then the lack of an eco-label was used as leverage to negotiate prices down.

WHAT IS AN ECO-LABEL?

provides brief information on environment related product qualities. enables consumers to identify products that are • environmentally safe; • manufactured using eco-friendly materials and • do not contain chemicals that are harmful to the user. • “eco-friendliness” is an additional product quality, used for marketing and advertising purposes.

Generally these labels are voluntary and mostly used for the promotion of the products on the basis of their environmentally friendly characteristics.

In the case of textiles and clothing there are for the time being no labels which have been enforced by mandatory rules.

Criteria for eco labels

The criteria for the use of eco-labels is mostly based on the "cradle-to-grave" approach, i.e. the life-cycle analysis of the product.

1. Production of raw materials

2. Production of the end product

3. Packaging and transport of raw materials and the finished product

4. Use of the product by consumers

5. Disposal of the product

cradle-to-grave assessment of for example a T-shirt starts in the cotton field and ends in incinerator or natural biodegradation

In practice there are big differences between various eco-labelling schemes,

some of which are based on detailed analysis of the environmental impacts

some other systems may analyse only certain stages of the life-cycle.

Eco parameters

Eco labels are awarded on the basis of compliance of certain eco parameters by the product.

pH Formaldehyde Heavy metals (As, Pb, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni, Hg) Pesticides Chlorinated phenols Dyestuffs (specific classifications) Chlorinated organic carriers Boicidal finishes Flame retardent finishes Colour fastness Emission of volatiles Odours

Different agencies will set their limit values for various eco parameters before awarding the license to the manufacturer to use their eco label on the product

comparison of norms/criteria stipulated for eco-lebelling of textiles

Eco-parameter

M.S.T

OTNOKOTEX 100

Clean Fashion

Steilmann Comitextil Indian eco-lable

Formaldehyde

Baby clothing 20 20 20 50 20 20

Close to skin 75 75 75 300 75 75

Outer Wear 300 300 300 300 300 300

Toxic pesticides

1 5 1 1 0.1-1 1

Pentachloro phenol

0.5 - 0.5 Ban 0.05-0.5 0.5

Heavy metals

Arsenic 0.1-0.2

0.1-0.2 0.1-0.2 0.1-0.2 0.1-0.2

Lead 0.04-0.8

0.04-0.8 0.04-0.8 0.04-0.8 0.04-0.8

Eco-parameter

M.S.T OTNOKOTEX 100

Clean Fashion

Steilmann

Comitextil

Indian eco-lable

Cadmium 0.005-0.1 0.005-0.1 0.005-0.1 0.005-0.1 0.005-0.1

Mercury 0.001-0.1 0.001-0.1 0.001-0.1 0.001-0.1 0.001-0.1

Copper 3-100 3-100 3-100 3-100 3-100

Cobalt 0.2-20 0.2-20 0.2-20 0.2-20 0.2-20

Zinc 5-100 5-100 5-100 5-100 5-100

Nickel 0.2-10 0.2-10 0.2-10 0.2-10 0.2-10

Azo dyes containing carcinogenic amine

Ban Ban Ban Ban Ban 50

Halogen carriers

Ban - - Ban Ban 200

Chlorine bleaching

- - - To avoid Ban -

BENEFITS OF ECO-LABELLING

Enhanced export market opportunities –

manufacturers and retailers of textile goods will come under increasing pressure to comply with the international eco-labels.

open worldwide competition beyond 2005, securing of an eco-label will greatly assist the manufacturers and retailers in enhancing the export market opportunities.

Improved product quality –

through the removal of substances in the fabric that may be harmful to the customer.

Financial savings – process optimisation and improvements that result in

saving of water, chemicals and energy. processing time RFT (Right First Time)

These benefits generally offset the incremental costs of using ecofriendly chemicals or of adopting a modified process

Improved environmental performance –

phasing out of toxic and hazardous substances conservation in water, energy and raw material usage.

This leads to a reduction in the quantities and pollution potential of various emissions.

Step towards ISO 14000 and ISO 9000 –

quality control procedures are an integral part of product eco-labelling,

easier to implement the ISO 14000 and ISO 9000 systems

Selection of appropriate Eco-label

Buyer requirements –

vary from country to country, influenced by

buyer preferenceconsumer preferences.Major export products –

eco-label certificates generally apply to specific product lines only. manufacturers first wish to focus on their main export product as any loss in market share, as a result of not having an eco-label, may lead to adverse financial impacts.

Ease of implementation –

select eco-labels where the criteria can be more readily achieved and sustained. Eco-labels based on final product quality may be easier to gain than those based on the full life cycle analysis,

which takes into consideration raw material use, environmental impacts of every stage of the manufacturing process (including wastewater characteristics, air pollution and solid waste disposal), worker health, use of child labour, packaging,

ECO-LABELLING SCHEMES

Organisations involved in Ecolabelling Schemes

Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) Good Environmental Choice (Sweden)

Institution RelatedÖko-Tex (EcoTex) 100 (Germany)

Öko -Tex (EcoTex) 1000 (Germany)

Company related Steilmann

Otto VersandHess Natur

Green Cotton

Government National

EKO-Seal (Holland)Environmental Choice (Canada)

Eco-Mark (Japan)Green Mark (China-Taiwan)

Eco-Mark (Korea),Environmental Labelling (China)

Eco-Mark (India).

National eco-labels are generally established by the respective National Standards Organisation or Ministry of Environment.

Multinational schemes are intended to facilitate trade within their common markets

Multinational EU-label

Nordic Eco-label

Blauer Engel – Germany (eco-label "Blue Angel"

Organization: UmweltbundesamtContact: Umweltbundesamt FG III 1.3Postfach 33 00 22D - 14191 Berlinnational label of Germany (1978); first national eco-label as product label in the world; responsibility: German Federal Environment Ministry; eco-label awarded by jury eco-label; product groups: consumer products, textiles and apparel: web: http://www.blauer-engel.de

Miljöval - Sweden (Falcon Mark - label of NGO)

Swedish Society for Nature Conservation,Good Environmental ChoiceBox 7005S – 402 31 Göteborgweb: http://www.snf.se/english.cfm

Coop Naturaline - Switzerland

company: Coop Naturelinecompany-owned label; entire textile chain; additional pollution testing by external labs and Coop quality safetytextiles made from cotton by controlled biological cultivation web: http://www5.coop.ch/naturaline/

AENOR-Medio Ambiente - Spain

Organization: Asociación Española de Normalización y Certificación (AENOR)Contact: AENORFernández de la Hoz, 52E- 28010 Madrid, Spain web: http://www.aenor.es

eco (Migros) - Switzerland company-owned label of Migros for health, environment and fair trade;products: eco-textiles, shoes and leather ware web: www.miosphere.ch

eco-tex - Germany contact: eco-tex – Institute for Applied Ecology GmbHGleueler Str. 373aD – 50935 Köln, Germany web: http://www.eco-tex.com

Green Cotton - Danmark company: Novotex A/s Ikast, Danmarkcompany-owned label earned six environment safety awards for products and production web: http://www.green-cotton.dk

Medi Ambient - Spain (Catalonia) (regional environmental label)

Organization: Regionale Regierung Katalonien/SpanienSeccció de Qualificació EcolňgicaServei de Recerca i Informació de Technologies NetesDirecció General de Qualitat AmbientalDepartment de Medi AmbientAv. Diagonal, 523-52508029 Barcelonaweb: http://www.upc.es/mediambient/indexeng.html

NF Environnement - France Contact:Association Francaise de Normalisation (AFNOR)NF-EnvironnementTour Europe, Cedex 7F 92049 Paris La Defense national label of France,founded by the French government and AFNOR (French standardisation organisation) in 1991;

textile and apparel: other product groups like washing and chemist´s articles; web: http://www.marque-nf.com/

Nordischer Rat "Weißer Schwan" – Scandinavia

Countries: Sweden, Norway, Finland, DenmarkContact: Swedish Standards Institution Finish Standards AssociationSIS Environmental Labelling SFSP.O. Box 6455 P.O. Box 116S – 11382 Stockholm FIN – 00241 HelsinkiStiftelesen Miljomerking i Norge Ministry of the EnvironmentKristian August Gate 5 P.O. Box 8080

Öko-Tex Standard 100 & 1000 Germany contact: Forschungsinstitut HohensteinSchloss HohensteinD 74357 Bönnigheim Öko-Tex standard 100 describes the human ecology of a product i.e. pieces of clothing are examined after strict requirements and limit values for pollutant quantities, skin compatibility or pH value. Öko-Tex standard 1000 examines production conditions according to environmental careful criteria as, energy, waste water, packaging, transport, conditions of work, environmental policy, protection of individuals, storekeeping etc . web: http://www.hohenstein.de

Produkt-Label "Körperverträgliche Textilien" - Germany (product label "body-wholesome textiles")

Contact: Fördergemeinschaft körperverträgliche Textilien e.V., DenkendorfKörschtalstraße 2673770 Denkendorf the German product label was established by an initative of Fördergemeinschaft körperverträgliche Textilien e.V. in July 2000; the Institute of Textile Technology and Process Engineering Denkendorf and the Dermatological Clinic of the University Hospital of Heidelberg developed a special test investigating the influence of textiles on human skin; this is a product label only for textiles web: http://www.koerpervertraegliche-textilien.de

Stichting Milieukeur - The Netherlands

Contact: The Stichting MilieukeurEisenhowerlaan 150 PO Box 17186 NL-2502 CD The Hagueweb: http://www.milieukeur.nl

Umweltzeichen "Bäume" - Austria (eco-Label - "Trees" )

Contact: UmweltministeriumSektion II Abt. 11/3 Stubenbastei 2A A- 1010 Wien national label of Austria, founded by the Ministry of Environment in 1991; textiles and apparel: , other product groups like wood and paper; web: http://www.umweltzeichen.at/

Cleaner and Greener - South Korea

Organization: Korean GovernmentContact:Korea Environmental Labelling Association (KELA)Paek, Young-Min, 1307 Leader’s Bldg. 1599-11Seocho-Dong, Seocho-Ku, Seoul, 137-070, Korea email: ecomark@chollian.net web: http://www.kela.or.kr/english/

Eco Mark – India Organization: Minístry of Environment and Forests Contact: Central Pollution Control BoardParivesh Bhawan, CBD-cum-Office Complex, East Arjun NagarDelhi 110032IndiaTel.: 91-11-2224812Fax: 91-11-2511539national label of India, founded by the Minístry of Environment and Forests in 1991. textiles and apparel: certification of textiles is under process; homepage: English; short summary in German - click on SEETEX-Server, email: cpcb@alpha.nic.in web: http://envfor.nic.in/cpcb/ecomark/ecomark.html

Eco Mark - Japan Contact: Japan Environment AssociationOffice - Tranomon 1 Bldg. (5F), 1 - 5 - 8Totanomon, Minato-kuTokyo 105 Japan national label of Japan; founded by the Japanese Department for Environment in 1989;textile and apparel: unbleached clothing, towels and bedlinen, textiles from waste materials, shopping bags from fabric, textiles from used resins, nappies from fabric; web: http://www.eic.or.jp/jea/index-e.htmlweb: http://www.jeas.or.jp/ecomark/english/index.html

Environment 2000 - Simbabwe (label of NGO)

Organization:Environment 2000 FoundationContact: Environment 2000P.O. Box A639Avondale, HarareZimbabweemail: e2000kb@samara.co.zw

Environmental Choice - Australia

Contact: ANZECC SecretariatEnvironment AustraliaGPO Box 787CANBERRA ACT 2601web: http://www.ea.gov.au/index.html

Environmental Choice – Canada

Contact: Terra Choice Environmental Services2197 Riverside Drive, Suite 300Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1H 7X3 national label of Canada; founded in 1988 by an initiative of the Ministry of Environment as the second national label of the world. "Terra Choice" is a privat organisation, who is responsible for carrying out and administration by order of the Ministry of environment. web: http://www.environmentalchoice.com/web: http://www.terrachoice.ca/

Environmental Choice - New Zealand

Organization: Environmental Choice New Zealand / Telarc NZContact: International Accreditation New Zealand (IANZ)Private Bag 28 908Remuera Auckland 1136Neuseeland web: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/web: http://www.ianz.govt.nz/ianz/index.htm

Global Ecolabelling Network – Canada country: ecolabelling organizationscontact: GEN Secretariat Terra Choice Environmental Services Inc.2781 Lancaster Road, Suite 400Ottawa, ON Canada K1B 1A7 e-mail gensecretariat@terrachoice.ca

or GEN General Affairs Office Japan Environment Association (JEA)Cosmos Aoyama 5-53-67, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0001, Japanphone +81 3 3406 5155fax +81 3 3406 5190 email: hv6h-stu@asahi-net.or.jpweb: http://www.gen.gr.jp/

Green Label - Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region) Organization:Green Council;Program: Green Labelemail: info@greencouncil.orgweb: http://www.greencouncil.org/

Green Label – Israel Organization:Ministry of the Environment

Program:Green Label Programemail: motis@environment.gov.il web: http://english.sviva.gov.il/Eng-site/About/about_frame.htm

Green Label – Singapur Organization: Government of SingaporeContact: Secretariat c/o Waste Minimisation Department40 scotts Road Environment Building#20-00 Singapore 0922SingaporeTel.: 65-731 9434Fax: 65-731 9749 email: secnet@singnet.com.sg web: http://www.sec.org.sg/greenlabel_htm/greenlable_frameset.htm

Green Label – Thailand Organization: Thailand Business Council for Sustainable Development (TBCSD)Institution: GREEN LABEL BOARD (GLB)Thailand Environment Institute 210 Sukumvit 64, Bangchak Refinery Building 4 Prakanong, Bangkok 10260 Thailand email: pongvipa@tei.or.thweb: http://www.tei.or.th/main.htm

Green Mark – Taiwan Organization: UMWELTSCHUTZBEHÖRDE (USB)Program: GREEN MARK PROGRAMMGCPCT/Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI)Bldg. 9 #195, Section 4, Chung Hsing RoadChutung, Hsinchu Taiwan, R.O.C.email: ningyu@edf.org.tw web: http://www.greenmark.itri.org.tw/

Green Seal - United States (private environmental label)

Contact: Green Seal1730 Rhode Island Ave, NW Suite 1050Washington DC 20036 3101 USA private label of the United States; founded by a private organisation in 1989; textile and apparel: no certified product, but other product groups like wooden and paper products; homepage: English; short summary in German - click on SEETEX-Server email: aweissman@greenseal.org web: http://www.greenseal.org

Qualidade Ambiental - Brazil (environmental quality)

Organization: Associacao Brasileira de Normas Tecnicas (ABNT) email: fcabral@abnt.org.brweb: http://www.abnt.org.br

Eco labels and products covered

Eco labels and products covered

Criteria and limit values of oko -Tex standard 100

Acid black 94 30336 Acid black 24 26370

List of institutions authorized to grant Oko-Tex 1000 certificate

Steps to achieve an eco label: Textile manufacture

A OR B

Simplified process flow diagram for Textile wet processing

Mill A

Mill B

Mill A

Mill B