Certification to our standards is carried out by a third party

Updated on June 25, 2026

Over recent months, Textile Exchange has been working alongside certification bodies to investigate allegations made by PETA related to mohair farms and wool farms in South Africa.  

These investigations, conducted by the certification body, have now concluded and confirmed the presence of a critical nonconformity against the Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS) on one farm and against the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) on one other farm. The second farm produced mohair as well as wool, and our procedures state that a critical non-conformity applies for all certified fiber from that farm including fiber from other species. Based on these results, the certification body took the decision to suspend the RMS certification of the first farm and both RWS and RMS certifications of the second farm in accordance with Responsible Animal Fibers Certification Procedures V2.2 and calibration 303. 

As a result, these two farms are no longer permitted to make claims about certification to Textile Exchange’s standards and any fiber from these farms is permanently ineligible from inclusion on a transaction certificate. These farms can only apply to be recertified after 180 days from the date that the critical nonconformity was identified. To regain certification for fiber shorn after the 180 days, the farms must also show evidence of having taken corrective actions that adequately address the root cause of the nonconformity before they are permitted to re-enter our system.  

As a standards owner driving continuous improvement, we take allegations of animal cruelty very seriously. In this case, as with all concerns raised, we acted swiftly in collaboration with the relevant certification body to ensure that appropriate investigations and necessary actions were taken with respect to the farms identified. We remain committed to working closely with supply system partners and stakeholders within the region. 

Textile Exchange’s standards are a powerful tool for driving positive change that results in real-world impact for climate, nature, people and animals. Textile Exchange continues to prioritize a credible, reliable, and transparent standard system that delivers clarity and confidence, and provides supply system stakeholders with the tools, systems, and guidance to make measurable progress for people, places, and animals.  

 
If you have any questions, please contact [email protected] directly. Our Standards Complaints policy is a process open to anyone who has a grievance against a supply system actor, certification body, or Textile Exchange itself. Please find our Complaint Form here.

Textile Exchange is sharing an update on the New Zealand Merino (NZM) investigation into animal welfare concerns that were raised at the end of 2024.

We have been informed by NZM and their certification body that the ZQ and Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) investigation into two farms has been concluded. In February, NZM voluntarily withdrew both of these farms from its ZQ group and the RWS.

As with any investigation, Textile Exchange will ensure that appropriate actions are taken by the responsible parties. In any case where non-conformities are found, the responsible certification body follows up to ensure that necessary corrective actions are carried out by the certified organization. Due to confidentiality requirements within our complaints and due diligence process, we cannot provide additional information about this investigation.

We view the RWS, ZQ and other animal welfare standards as essential tools for driving continuous improvement across the industry. By adopting and promoting standards like RWS, ZQ and other animal welfare standards, we collectively elevate the baseline for animal welfare and have accountability frameworks in place for when this baseline is not met and encourage incremental advancements in practices.

If you have any questions on the ZQ or RWS investigation, please contact NZM or [email protected] directly for more details.

Textile Exchange is sharing an update that Intertek Testing Services NA, Inc. (Intertek)’s accreditation body, ANSI National Accreditation Board, LLC (ANAB), has lifted the suspension of Intertek’s accreditation to all Textile Exchange standards effective February 12, 2025.

Therefore, as of February 12, 2025, Intertek may resume all certification activities related to Textile Exchange in all countries. This includes (but not limited to) issuing transaction certificates for certified products shipped while the suspension was in place.

Textile Exchange has provided guidance to certification bodies regarding the issuance of transaction certificates, including for certified organizations who have transferred to another certification body (please see ASR-104 Policy for Transaction Certificates, section A8.5).

If an organization transferred to a new certification body during Intertek’s suspension, the succeeding certification body may issue transaction certificates for shipments certified under Intertek, provided all conditions outlined in ASR-104-v3.1 Policy for Transaction Certificates, Section A8.5 are met. For more details, please contact your certification body. Transaction certificates previously issued by Intertek are still considered valid – unless otherwise notified by Intertek or Textile Exchange. To authenticate a transaction certificate issued by Intertek, please see the Textile Exchange transaction certificate portal.

If you are a certified client of Intertek, please contact them directly for more details regarding how the lifting of this suspension may impact the certification services you receive. Contact information of licensed certification bodies is available below.

Please see our initial statement for more information.

SCS Global Services (SCS) has chosen to voluntarily withdraw from Textile Exchange Responsible Animal Fiber standards (RAF) effective March 21, 2025. Please note that this affects farm certifications for the RAF standards only and no other scopes are affected (i.e. RAF supply chain certifications and other standards are not affected).

To maintain certification, SCS’s RAF certified clients must now seek certification services from and transfer their certification services to another accredited certification body no later than October 30, 2025. All RAF scope certificates issued by SCS will be considered withdrawn after that date.

RAF transaction certificates previously issued by SCS are still considered valid – unless otherwise notified by SCS or Textile Exchange.

SCS is permitted to continue to issue RAF transaction certificates for valid scope certificates until October 30, 2025. To authenticate a transaction certificate issued by SCS, please see the Textile Exchange transaction certificate portal.

Please note that SCS will no longer be permitted to issue RAF transaction certificates effective as of October 30, 2025.

If you are a RAF certified client of SCS, you should have received their notification already.

The Procedure for the Withdrawal of Certification Body Licensing (ASR-112) details the requirements for certification bodies in case of withdrawal. We recognize the burden that this creates for the clients of this certification body since they may require another audit and be subject to its additional costs.

While Textile Exchange understands that the change in status of this certification body will impact site certifications, we thank SCS for their support of our RAF standards over the past years and their continuing support of other Textile Exchange standards.