GOTS Press Release +++ Turkish Textile Industry welcomes Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) Regional Seminar in Izmir, Turkey

Turkish Textile Industry welcomes Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) 
Regional Seminar in Izmir, Turkey

For immediate release

Stuttgart, 05th March 2019                                                                                 

On 18th February the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) hosted the Regional Seminar for the Turkish Textile Industry. The event was held in Izmir, in which region the first   organic cotton in Turkey was grown. The one-day seminar brought together more than 150 participants from local brand offices, manufacturers, certifiers as well as academics with the aim to connect, exchange and discuss innovations, experiences and best-practices regarding GOTS and the organic textile market.

Because Turkey is the country with the third most GOTS certified facilities worldwide, following India and Bangladesh, it was also chosen as venue for the GOTS Annual Meeting of the GOTS Advisory Council, the Standards Committee and the entire GOTS operational  team.

 The seminar was split in three sessions. After a general GOTS introduction including the newest figures and buying markets updates, standard criteria and labelling requirements experts from brands and processors as well as certification bodies shared their views. Certified processors emphasized the risk management GOTS provides, manufactures pointed out how GOTS certification benefits their reputation. Certification bodies explained how the certification can serve as assurance for end consumers and brands.

 “If we aim for a more sustainable production, the shortest way of achieving it is organic. We need to embed the word organic into everybody´s mind,” said Burak Sertbaş, AEGEAN APPAREL EXPORTERS’ ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN

After the third - very lively - interactive group sessions the participants presented concrete outcomes and proposals: Consumers already actively inform themselves on organic production and hold brands within the domestic market responsible. Therefore, more consumer information about GOTS’ benefits and more visibility is needed. Achieving GOTS certification is perceived as challenging due to the strict and different requirements but provides competitive advantages in comparison to non-certified goods, on the domestic as well as on foreign buying markets. It is also an advantage to be geographically closer to the big buying markets in Europe.

 „I believe the Turkish Market has a great potential in becoming more and more organic and GOTS plays an increasingly important role in this shift,“ said Elif Yaraşik, GOTS Representative Turkey.

 Photos from the Regional Seminar can be downloaded here.

A comprehensive post event report is available on the GOTS website.

The great support from the Lead sponsors USB Belgelendirme and Control Union and the Bronze Sponsors ICEA and TEXPRO, as well as from the supporters Etko, Organication, Fateks, and Aegean Clothing Manufacturers´ Association enabled the implementation of the event.

ABOUT GOTS: GOTS is the stringent voluntary global standard for the entire post-harvest processing (including spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing) of apparel and home textiles made with certified organic fibre (such as organic cotton and organic wool), and includes both environmental and social criteria. Key provisions include a ban on the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), highly hazardous chemicals (such as azo dyes and formaldehyde), and child labour, while requiring strong social compliance management systems and strict waste water treatment practices. GOTS was developed by leading international standard setters - Organic Trade Association (U.S.), Japan Organic Cotton Association, International Association Natural Textile Industry (Germany), and Soil Association (UK) to define globally-recognised requirements that ensure the organic status of textiles, from field to finished product. GOTS is a non-profit organisation which is self-financed.

For more information please see www.global-standard.org.

Please download the high resolution photo here.

Juliane Ziegler
Communication Executive

GOTS
Global Organic Textile Standard