Special Report
● Organic agriculture protects biodiversity by avoiding toxic pesticides and safeguarding our wildlife and plant life. ● Soil is the second largest carbon sink on the planet after the oceans, and organic farming practices take carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it into the soil. It also avoids the GHG emitting nitrogen fertilisers and chemical pesticides thus reducing climate impact.
Now we can measure impact Businesses are being challenged more than ever to prove their actions towards a better environment. We can see the effect in our industry with more organic and recycled products being introduced than ever.
Although there’s growing demand for more sustainable products, there is a lot of confusion about what that means. Research found that 85% of consumers want to buy more sustainably but less than 10% of them act on it. We’ve been talking about more sustainable fibres since 2005 but realised we needed to go beyond the theoretical and explain – to every customer on the chain including the end user – the practical impact of sustainable choices. We partnered with a tech start-up who mapped our supply chain for every product from raw material through to our warehouse, comparing that with similar geographical locations for conventional supply chains. This was based on research by universities and a number of Life Cycle Analyses using established scientific methodology.
This led to the launch of the Mantis
The Mantis World Impact Calculator was trialled on the M01 and M02 Essential Organic Ts
World Impact Calculator – where the savings on carbon, water, energy and pesticides of our garments can be reported to every customer on the chain – helping companies with CSR reporting and giving the wearer/ consumer real data and transparency using a ‘white label’ microsite. Each garment has a QR code printed in the care label showing its impact and journey, featuring photographs and locations of every stage of production. The printwear industry is uniquely positioned to facilitate more responsible purchasing practices. For any corporate client wishing to buy multiple garments, customers can calculate the impact
garments, energy, waste, water use and eco-friendly chemical inputs.
What happens if you’re not certified? Without certified printers, suppliers of certified organic products can’t put the organic certification logo on their labels before they are decorated; or alternatively printers need to remove the references to certification (e.g. by cutting out each label). Standard owners such as the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) protect their logo use very rigorously, including by legal action in some cases.
Without the organic certification logo on the end product, there is no independent verification for your customers and for consumers and without more certified printers there will continue to be a lack of transparency and trust in supply chains.
Which certification should I go for?
There are two main organic certifications globally: the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and Textile Exchange’s Organic Content Standard (OCS). GOTS is the gold standard globally because it considers the impacts of processing as well as the percentage of organic fibre in the finished garment. The rising demand for organic textiles: ● The organic textile market has grown for the eigth year running, growing 10% over the last year. ● There’s been a 127% increase in the number of organic cotton products sold in UK since 2017. ● 55% of companies aim to source at least half of their products with sustainable materials by 2025.
● To discuss which type of certification is right for your business, or request an application pack visit
www.soilassociation.org
www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk
savings of that enquiry through the Mantis World website. We hope by providing real data based on scientific studies, buyers will have the tools they need to see the impact they are having by buying responsibly.
What’s next?
Having been a pioneer of sustainability in our industry, we realise that nobody is ever perfect – and that’s perfectly ok. We’re happy to share where we are on our journey of continuous improvement, as well as the technology we’ve developed with interested parties. Here are some of our promises that we invite our stakeholders to measure us on: ● In 2017 we pledged that all the cotton we buy would be organic by 2021, we’re delighted to have achieved that two years early. ●We were one of the founding signatories to the UN Fashion Charter for Climate Change committing to net zero emissions by 2050. ● Continually measuring and improving our impact, reporting through Sustainable Clothing Action Plan and Textile Exchange’s Corporate Fibres & Materials Benchmark. ●We promised to continue educating and equipping our industry to drive collective change. Our biggest message is to be aware of the massive impact of disposable clothing. By choosing well made products and extending the lifespan of a garment through careful washing, we could make the world of difference.
GOTS OCS
Confirms the item is made with organic fibres and this has been traced through the supply chain (the chain of custody).
Confirms the item has been processed according to strict standards for ecological and socially responsible production along the whole supply chain. This means workers’ rights are protected, working conditions are safe and hygienic, only low impact dyes and inks are used, waste water is treated properly, and energy and water use is monitored.
You must print on certified labelled products using GOTS approved inks or heat transfer vinyls.
Allows you to print on GOTS certified products, which can be labelled with the GOTS logo, because it proves the chain of custody as well as the processing methods used.
Allows you to print on OCS or GOTS certified products, which can be labelled with the OCS logo, because either proves the chain of custody.
✓ ✓
✓ ✕
✓ ✓
✓
✕ ✕
✓ April 2020 |33 |
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84
