Companies and consumers around the world rely on the OEKO-TEX® brand. For now 30 years, OEKO-TEX® has stood for transparency along the international supply chains of the textile and leather industries, as well as for consumer protection, ensuring greater product responsibility and trust for all involved. Over 21,000 manufacturers, brands, and retailers in more than 100 countries officially work with OEKO-TEX®. As a founding member of the OEKO-TEX® Association, Hohenstein supports companies along the textile value chain in matters of product stewardship and sustainable management.
With accredited testing and inspection services as well as broad industry and retail know-how, the Textile testing specialist offers tailored solutions. Therefore, the OEKO-TEX® modular system provides the optimal basis for this as it continually refines its standards and is always practically orientated to current market requirements.
Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
HOHENSTEIN: Since 1992, OEKO-TEX® has been offering practical, tailored solutions for product stewardship and consumer protection. OEKO-TEX® provides tools for management and communication of safety and sustainability efforts. The modular system ensures these services work together for traceability, transparency and cost reduction along the textile and leather supply chains.
In Romanian textile market, the main products are the OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100 Certification and OEKO-TEX® STeP. STeP by OEKO-TEX® is an independent certification for environmentally friendly and socially responsible production facilities of the textile supply chain that want to document their sustainable commitment transparently by means of an assessment, a company audit, and a concluding scoring. STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® is an independent certification system for textiles from all stages of production that have been tested for harmful substances. The certificate is awarded when all elements of an item fulfil the necessary requirements, which are updated annually.
E.E: What’s the news about new products?
HOHENSTEIN: OEKO-TEX® RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS
On December 14, 2022, Hohenstein was able to hand over the first certification certificate for OEKO-TEX® RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS to its pilot customer Weitblick GmbH & Co. KG. The certification was introduced by OEKO-TEX® in November 2022 and thus supports companies in the textile and leather industry in the implementation of human rights and environmental due diligence obligations. The contribution to achieving the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement is another optional component.
First OEKO-TEX® LEATHER STANDARD certification for footwear
The pilot project LOWA and Hohenstein ended successfully in December 2022: LOWA, one of the leading outdoor shoe specialists, and the testing service provider Hohenstein are entering new territory together. The LOWA model LADY LIGHT GTX has been awarded the OEKO-TEX® LEATHER STANDARD certificate. This is the first certification of footwear according to OEKO-TEX® LEATHER STANDARD.
Rebranding
OEKO-TEX® recently worked to build the clear and unified OEKO-TEX® World with a fresh new look: The most visible change is the new OEKO-TEX® logo, based on a geometric square and an organic circle, which reflect the scientific approach of OEKO-TEX® and the nature it aims to protect. The rebranding will make communication easier for OEKO-TEX®-certified companies and foster end consumer recognition.
Impact calculator
To break down the high level of complexity for companies in the textile industry and make life cycle assessment as straightforward as possible, OEKO-TEX® has developed a digital calculation tool. Launched in early 2022, the Impact Calculator is a simple, user-friendly tool that helps manufacturing companies calculate their carbon and water footprints. STeP (Sustainable Textile & Leather Production) by OEKO-TEX® certified textile companies are able to use the new Impact Calculator to measure their CO2 emissions and water consumption – on a company level, per processing step or for 1 kg of material. Use of the tool is voluntary and open to all textile production companies that apply for or have already obtained STeP by OEKO-TEX® certification.
E.E: What are the ranges of products?
HOHENSTEIN: OEKO-TEX® offers tailored support at all stages of the textile / leather chain: Starting with input control (ECO PASSPORT), going on with process control (STeP) and rounded off with output control (STANDARD 100, LEATHER STANDARD & MADE IN GREEN). Additionally OEKO-TEX® offers several supporting tool, such as a buying guide and tools for a better supply chain management.
Input control
ECO PASSPORT by OEKO-TEX ® is an independent certification for textile and leather chemicals, dyes, and auxiliaries. The three-stage verification process ensures that the substances fulfil specific requirements regarding sustainable textile production. ECO PASSPORT certified products are compliant with ZDHC MRSL to Level 1, 2 or 3. The certification assists manufacturers in the selection of chemicals that are environmentally friendly and harmless in terms of human ecology. They have reliable control over the substances used, right from their procurement, even before they feed them into their production process. The ECO PASSPORT certification of textile auxiliaries is the perfect complement to the existing OEKO-TEX® certifications: On the one hand ECO PASSPORT integrates perfectly with the STANDARD 100 and LEATHER by OEKO-TEX® (Output control), on the other hand, it serves as proof of the use of sustainable chemical products for STeP by OEKO-TEX® certification (Process control).
Process control
STeP by OEKO-TEX® is an independent certification for environmentally friendly and socially responsible production facilities of the textile supply chain that want to document their sustainable commitment transparently by means of an assessment, a company audit, and a concluding scoring.
DETOX TO ZERO by OEKO-TEX® enables manufacturers along the textile supply chain to assess, on the basis of an annual status report, whether their chemical management and the quality of their waste water and sludge meet the objectives of the Greenpeace Detox campaign.
Output control
STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® is an independent certification system for textiles from all stages of production that have been tested for harmful substances. The certificate is awarded when all elements of an item fulfil the necessary requirements, which are updated annually.
MADE IN GREEN by OEKO-TEX® is a product label for textiles and leather articles from materials tested for harmful substances that were manufactured in environmentally friendly facilities and under socially responsible working conditions. MADE IN GREEN makes it possible to trace labelled products transparently and learn more about their manufacture.
LEATHER STANDARD by OEKO-TEX® is an independent certification system for leather articles from all stages of production that have been tested for harmful substances. The certificate is awarded when all elements of an item fulfil the necessary requirements, which are updated annually.
Supply chain management
OEKO-TEX® Buying Guide lists more than 10,000 companies that actively work with OEKO-TEX®. You can combine different selection criteria and filters for the optimum search results. The selection criteria include, for instance, the type of OEKO-TEX® certification, world regions and countries in which you want to search for suppliers and other parameters for specifying the products you are searching for in more detail, including the stage of production, material, area of application, and so on. provides an attractive platform for bringing attention to product lines that have been tested for harmful substances, in addition to individual marketing activities.
MyOEKO-TEX® is the central portal for the certificate and application management of all OEKO-TEX® products.
E.E: What estimations do you have for the rest of 2022?
HOHENSTEIN: The development of OEKO-TEX® business is positive, with more and more companies having their products certified every year. We also see a positive trend for the future and are pleased about the great, growing interest in OEKO-TEX® products. In Romania, more and more companies want to be certified with OEKO-TEX® STeP and OEKO-TEX® MADE IN GREEN.
