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The Textile Magazine
jANUARY 2012
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57
obliged to comply with the defined
limit values in all certification proc-
esses.
By also regulating these substanc-
es under the product-related OEKO-
TEX Standard 100, the OEKO-TEX
Association expects to have a sig-
nificant impact on the global textile
chain so that the use of these kinds
of tensides will be considerably re-
duced. In order to start helping to
eliminate alkylphenolethoxylates
even sooner, the OEKO-TEX Asso-
ciation will begin testing for alkyl-
phenolethoxylates straightaway as
part of its regular control tests, and
during company audits it will be
helping certificate-holders to iden-
tify at this early stage the possible
sources of this group of substances
in their delivery chain, and to find
substitutes.
Alkylphenolethoxylates
have
been excluded since 1995 under the
production-based certification of en-
vironmentally-friendly production
sites in accordance with the OEKO-
TEX Standard 1000, and are tested
for accordingly by the OEKO-TEX
member-institutes.
The OEKO-TEX General Manag-
ers attending the meeting in Delhi
were also unanimous in agreeing to
extend the scale of regular control
testing of certified products world-
wide from the current level of at
least 15 per cent of all certificates
issued annually to 20 per cent in fu-
ture. In practice, in recent years an
average of 18 per cent of the certifi-
cates have already been tested at the
OEKO-TEX Association’s own ex-
pense, using product samples taken
from retailers.
Another innovation that was in-
troduced at the meeting was a sup-
plement listing additional specifica-
tions which would enable special
articles such as tents, buggies or
push-chairs, office chairs and ruck-
sacks to be certified under the OE-
KO-TEX Standard 100, with imme-
diate effect.
Finally, the heads of the OEKO-
TEX institutes announced that the
forthcoming 20th anniversary of
testing for harmful substances un-
der the OEKO-TEX Standard 100
would be appropriately marked by
some special promotions. Planned
projects include a re-launch of the
existing 16-language website at
www.oeko-tex.com, a specialist
international conference, a Knowl-
edge Olympics for specialist retail-
ers in eight European countries and
a competition for a media and cor-
porate prize on the theme of sustain-
ability.
India has issued 624 currently
valid OEKO-TEX certificates, thus
being the fifth in an international
comparison of the countries issu-
ing the most certificates, behind
China, Germany, Turkey and Italy.
Since the first OEKO-TEX branch
office was opened in India in 2005,
demand for OEKO-TEX product
certifications from local companies
at all stages of the processing chain
has increased steadily and continues
to do so.
Customer enquiries are now han-
dled by four OEKO-TEX agencies,
in Mumbai, Delhi, Tirupur and
Ahmedabad, with a further office in
Sri Lanka.
w
General Managers of Oeko-Tex institutes meeting in Delhi
technology