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The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

de Le Cuona, one of the leaders in natural textiles for interiors, was amongst the first to bring a certified collection of 100% organic fabrics to GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) to the home decor market. The fabric house invested extreme effort into growing the demand for organic home textiles by educating consumers and interior designers on the benefits of using organic fabrics in interiors - particularly linen - and promoting the collection within the industry, encouraging other fabric houses to follow suit.

GOTS is the worldwide leading standard for organic fibres. Certification to GOTS ensures the organic status of fabrics, from harvesting of the raw materials, through environmentally and socially responsible making. These fabrics are sustainably produced without harmful chemicals.

Jamie Page from The Cancer Prevention and Education Society says:

“These are just the sort of measures that responsible and health aware companies in the interior textiles industry can take to help people reduce their exposure to hazardous chemicals as well as using materials sourced in an environmentally friendly way. We very much support these types of initiatives.”

Why using organic fabrics certified to GOTS is important for health and wellness of home owners

It is important that the organic textiles used in homes are certified to make sure the products have been through the rigorous certification process.

Many home owners are already aware of the health benefits of using organic products certified to GOTS and are looking to include them in interiors, particularly bedrooms, nurseries and places of relaxation. The benefits include minimizing the risks of potentially harmful chemicals emitted in the environment we breathe in and improvement of health and wellbeing. It is particularly important for people with allergies, pregnant women and babies.

For example, the average person sleeps 8 hours per day (which comes to 2,920 hours in a year or 29,200 hours in 10 years), meaning that the time spent in bedrooms, surrounded by various home furnishing products and textiles, makes it important to make sure the environment we rest and sleep in is as safe as possible.

Synthetic and some natural non-organic fabrics might be produced using pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers and other chemicals at all stages of production. These potentially harmful chemicals are embedded in the fibre the fabrics are made from and the chances of getting rid of them completely by washing are very low. Certification to GOTS ensures that each of the stages of production are carried out without hazardous or prohibited substances and chemicals.

GOTS is important for environment and society – sustainable textile industry

Certification to GOTS includes environmental and social criteria, which considers the ethical treatment of workers as well as the chemicals being used. It is particularly important for textiles produced outside of Europe, as norms and regulations on production, working and social conditions might differ across the world.

GOTS encourages manufacturers and farmers to control and reduce energy, chemicals and water use in the fibre growing production process, and ensures transparency of the supply chain. Each supplier of products certified to GOTS has a licence number and can be easily found in the GOTS database.

Organic Linen and Organic Cotton - the difference

While linen certified to GOTS and cotton certified to GOTS are both an incredible alternative to conventional natural and synthetic fabrics, these two type of fabrics have different qualities and are produced in different ways.

From a consumer point of view, linen fabric might be more suitable for their lifestyle as linen has versatile qualities. For example, linen is naturally antibacterial and does not support bacteria growth, while cotton is not. Linen fabrics also have natural thermoregulation and moisture-wicking properties, which makes it a preference for bedrooms. Cotton doesn’t share these qualities and also takes longer todry.

From a sustainability point of view, cotton consumes more energy than linen during the production process, as flax is a low energy fibre in comparison to cotton.

de Le Cuona, a luxury interior fabric house, is stepping in to the wellness market and looking for like-minded people and businesses to collaborate with.

“A lot of people have become aware of the benefits of having 100% organic products. I have been working on the idea of improving the environment people live in not just decoratively but health-wise for a couple of years, and finally I am ready to unveil the new product which will launch in spring 2020. de Le Cuona Pure collection will consist of totally organic linen fabrics and products for interiors. When we say totally organic, we mean each of the up to six different traceable stages from the field where the seed is planted, to the final product arriving at our warehouse is certified to GOTS. de Le Cuona Pure will be 100% organic”.

“It’s an extremely costly process to develop this totally organic collection, but I believe that as the world becomes more and more aware of the damage we cause to our health by using and being surrounded by chemicals, it will appeal to more and more home owners and interior designers. Increasing the amount of “healthy” textiles in interiors, particularly bedrooms, nurseries or interiors for relaxation and wellness, may help to reduce allergies and make health improvements.” – Bernie de Le Cuona, Founder and CEO