We are committed to the fair and clean manufacture of clothing. We advocate reducing the use of chemicals and promote the use of fairly produced cotton and compliance with social standards in factories, to ensure the responsible manufacture of textiles.
Textile supply chains are often complex: there are numerous processing steps between the raw material and the finished item of clothing. We take a holistic approach to implementing sustainability in the textile supply chain. At various levels, we promote compliance with social and ecological requirements to guarantee the responsible manufacture of textiles.
In June 2020, we adopted the revised «Textiles and Leather» Guideline, which regulates the minimum social, ecological, chemical and technical process-related requirements concerning both the cultivation of raw textile materials and their further processing. It also specifies the requirements for the physical characteristics of the products and the need for transparency in the supply chain. The guideline applies to all our own-label clothing products (including shoes and accessories), home and household textiles, procurement for in-house purposes, for example workwear, and also to products used for sponsorship or collection promotions.
Supplementing the «Textiles and Leather» Guideline, we have also produced the new Guideline on the «Use of Chemicals, Supply Chain Transparency and Quality of Textiles». This guideline details the requirements to be met for our clothing and home and household textiles, and lists all chemicals that are banned or subject to limits. For our wet-process suppliers, for example dye works, it also regulates our requirements pertaining to wastewater quality and lays down the specific physical parameters needed for our finished products.
Both guidelines therefore include the basic requirements for all our textile products.
Compliance with social standards and fair working conditions in supply chains is important to us. Around 95 percent of our textile suppliers have a good audit result according to the amfori BSCI social standard (amfori Business Social Compliance Initiative) or equivalent.
For Naturaline, even more stringent standards apply to the manufacture of and trade in Coop Naturaline textiles, and compliance with those standards is rigorously monitored along the whole production chain. In our cooperative partnerships with our partner companies, the focus is on long-term, continuous improvement. All suppliers and sub-contractors must, as a minimum, be amfori BSCI-compliant and attain SA8000 certification in the medium term. SA8000 is a certification that is also based on conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations (UN).
Coop is publishing the production facilities that produce clothing and home textiles for Coop own-label brands on Open Supply Hub. These are the facilities where the last processing step is performed, i.e. where the articles are made (sewn). The published facilities cover 90% of the purchasing volume for our own-label brand textiles. The details of the production facilities are updated yearly.
Coop is among the first companies in Switzerland to commit to the sustainability targets of Sustainable Textiles Switzerland 2030 (STS2030). Through this commitment, Coop agrees to implement measures that will enable it to achieve the following targets: 1. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. 2. Promotion of fair wages and humane working conditions for all. 3. Promotion of innovative business models toward a circular economy. 4. Transparency to ensure that sustainable purchasing decisions can be made.
In our own-label textile brands, we advocate environmentally friendly production and safe and fair working conditions. Since as early as 2012, in our «Sustainable Sourcing» Guideline, we have been regulating the use of chemicals that are rated as hazardous by the EU's recognized body (ECHA: European Chemicals Agency). In our Detox Commitment, we go much further. In 2013, we became the first Swiss retailer to sign a declaration of intent with Greenpeace with the aim of reducing hazardous chemicals in textile production. Now, in our new Guideline on the «Use of Chemicals, Supply Chain Transparency and Quality of Textiles», we have also specified requirements in the production process that must be fulfilled by our business partners.
With our Naturaline own-label brand, our commitment to fairly produced, organic cotton clothing stretches back 25 years. Thanks to our longstanding commitment to Naturaline, we are one of the world's largest suppliers of organic and fairly traded cotton textiles. For our own-label brand Sergio, we use sustainable cotton from the Better Cotton Initiative, which is a standard for fair and environmentally-friendly cotton production.
Our own-label brands are designed to last. We are about sustainability, not fast fashion: our focus is on high quality and production standards as well as timeless designs. To close the loop, we support sustainable solutions for old textiles. The most sensible way to recycle clothing items that are no longer worn by the original buyers is for them to be passed on and remain in use as clothing. In cooperation with Tell-Tex, we are committed to the professional collection and recycling of clothing.
