New Oeko-Tex regulations for 2019 comes into effect

The new Oeko-Tex regulations for all certification systems and services have entered into force from April 1. Consumer protection and sustainability along the textile value chain have always been fundamental issues for the Oeko-Tex association. For this reason, existing guidelines of the Oeko-Tex product portfolio are updated at the beginning of each year.

The latest changes relate to the Eco Passport by Oeko-Tex standard. The basis for sustainable production of textiles and leather goods is the use of environmentally friendly chemicals. The Eco Passport by Oeko-Tex certification is expressly aimed at the avoidance of unwanted chemicals, even before they enter the global supply chain. For this, numerous chemicals, including dyes, boiling agents, adhesives, inks, pigments and accessories, are analysed in a confidential, three-stage process, which confirms that the formulation and individual ingredients fulfil specific criteria with respect to sustainability, security and compliance with legal provisions.

Following the introduction of the Leather Standard by Oeko-Tex for leather products that have been tested for harmful substances, as well as the Sustainable Textile & Leather Production certification (STeP) for environmentally friendly and sustainable leather products, in addition to textile chemicals, leather chemicals will shortly also be able to be tested and certified according to the Eco Passport by Oeko-Tex standard.

Various substances have been newly added to the limit value catalogues. In addition to quinoline, which was already subject to monitoring by Oeko-Tex, these include the softener and viscosity regulator TCEP (Tris(2-chlorethyl) phosphate), the propellant ADCA (diazene-1,2-dicarboxamide) and the siloxanes D4, D5 and D6.

From 2019, two new product groups will be monitored in Standard 100 by Oeko-Tex and Leather Standard by Oeko-Tex: glyphosate and its salts, as well as the carcinogenic N-nitrosamines and N-nitrosatable substances.