GOTS certified yarn
More and more often you meet a small green label on yarn and garments — the GOTS certificate. What does it actually mean, and why did the textile industry bother to build this whole certification system?
Imagine you grow apples. You use only natural fertilisers, you care about your workers' comfort, and you pick only the best fruit for sale. How do you prove that quality? With a certificate. But what if anyone can invent their own standard, without any real grounds for it?
That question troubled the participants of a textile conference in Düsseldorf, and the answer became the GOTS standard. Many large companies signed the agreement to apply it, and today those are the producers happily chosen as reliable suppliers. The standard controls the whole production chain — from growing the fibre through processing, manufacturing, labelling, packaging and transport, labour conditions included.
Summer in Kashmir, Alba — soft, breathable cotton with a generous palette. A good choice for summer tops, tees and sweaters for the in-between seasons.
Bio Balance — cotton and wool at a fine meterage, with everything it takes for garments that stay relevant all year round.
Bio Shetland, Semilla Melange, Loch Lomond, Hamelton Tweed 1 — organic wool for everyone who loves yarn with character and a guaranteed warming effect.
What GOTS guarantees
- cotton, linen and other fibre plants are grown without herbicides, pesticides and other hazardous chemicals;
- fibres are not bleached with chlorine, and toxic dyes are not used;
- no heavy metals — right down to the oils on the weaving looms;
- product packaging is made of recyclable material;
- labour relations are held to the standard.
At BC Garn, 14 articles carry GOTS certification, with environmental and social standards confirmed every year.
The GOTS certificate is awarded to these articles:
- Summer in Kashmir, Alba — soft, breathable cotton with a generous palette. A good choice for summer tops, tees and sweaters for the in-between seasons.
- Bio Balance — cotton and wool at a fine meterage, with everything it takes for garments that stay relevant all year round.
- Bio Shetland, Semilla Melange, Loch Lomond, Hamelton Tweed 1 — organic wool for everyone who loves yarn with character and a guaranteed warming effect.
Kremke Soul Wool carries GOTS yarn as well — The Merry Merino 140, for one.
If you share these values, a certified product becomes something bigger than a purchase. It is a contribution to the idea of making this world better, cleaner and more beautiful.
Further reading: our eco-friendly yarn guide and the BC Garn yarn guide — and if the yarn you want is out of stock, we will find a substitute.