The Global Recycling Standard (GRS) is a certification standard that helps importers and manufacturers ensure that their materials are recycled and comply with certain standards concerning chemicals and environmental practices. GRS is applicable to a wide range of recycled materials, including finished and intermediate products. In this section, we will explore the most important aspects of GRS certification, including what materials are covered under GRS, what recycled means, and how to find suppliers with GRS certified recycled materials.
What materials are covered under GRS?
GRS covers a wide range of recycled materials, including finished and intermediate products. Although GRS was developed for the textile industry, it can also be applied to products from other sectors such as metal, paper, and plastic. However, for the purposes of this article, we will be focusing solely on textile products.
The most common intermediate textile products that are covered under GRS include recycled fabrics (cotton, polyester, nylon, etc.), recycled down, feathers, recycled PET chips, recycled filament, and recycled yarns/threads. Examples of finished products that are covered under GRS include clothing made with recycled materials, clothing containing recycled filling materials, home textile products such as bedspreads, draperies, drapery liners and curtains, and blankets.
What is Recycled?
Recycling is the process of reclaiming waste materials and reprocessing them into something new, instead of disposing of them in landfills. Recycled materials can come from post-consumer materials, which are generated by households or commercial, industrial, and institutional facilities in their role as end-users of the product, and pre-consumer or post-industrial materials, which are diverted from the waste stream during the manufacturing process.
What is GRS?
GRS stands for Global Recycled Standard, which is one of the most common certification standards for textiles made with recycled materials. The standard sets requirements for third-party certification of recycled content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices, and chemical restrictions. Products are verified to contain at least 20% of recycled material, and both pre-consumer and post-consumer material are accepted. Each stage of production is required to be certified, starting at the recycling stage and ending at the last seller in the final business-to-business transaction. GRS also restricts the use of hazardous chemicals in the processing of GRS products.
Are all recycled suppliers certified to GRS?
No, not all recycled suppliers are certified to GRS. Although the number of manufacturers that are GRS certified has increased in recent years, GRS has still not been widely adopted. Therefore, it is important not to assume that all recycled textile products are GRS certified.
How do I find suppliers with GRS certified recycled materials?
To find suppliers with GRS certified recycled materials, you should look for a GRS certificate issued by one of the approved certified bodies. The certificate, called Scope Certificate (SC), verifies that the supplier is qualified to produce goods according to the GRS standard. However, it is important to take a closer look at the certificate and ensure that the name of the apparel supplier, name of the site supplying the products, and the processing steps or activities listed on the certificate correspond to the services your immediate supplier provides. Additionally, you should verify that the certification body is on the list of approved GRS certification bodies, that the scope certificate is still valid, and that the product category matches your apparel.
How do I make sure the products purchased are actually GRS certified?
To ensure that the products you purchased are actually GRS certified, you should request for the Transaction Certificate (TC) from the apparel supplier. TC should be included in the shipment of the GRS certified products. A valid TC should contain the buyer and seller information, where the products are shipped from and to, overall volume and description of the product, recycled content percentage, and information regarding whether it is coming from pre or post-consumer materials. It is important to ensure that the details on the TC are correct and correspond to the products you received from the supplier.