Global Recycle Standard (GRS)

Continental Clothing Co. products displaying the symbol are certified under GRS by the Control Union Certifications, licence CU 828402.

The Global Recycle Standard is an international, voluntary, full product standard that sets requirements for third-party certification of recycled content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices, and chemical restrictions.
The GRS is intended to meet the need of companies looking to verify the recycled content of their products (both finished and intermediate products) and to verify responsible social, environmental, and chemical practices in the production of these products.
The objectives of the GRS are to define requirements to ensure accurate content claims, good working conditions, and that harmful environmental and chemical impacts are minimized.
The GRS addresses the flow of products within and between companies, and covers manufacturing, storage, handling, and shipping. The GRS applies to the supply chain, including all owners up to the final seller in the last B2B transaction.
The Global Recycle Standard (GRS) was originally developed by Control Union Certifications (CU) in 2008 and ownership was passed to Textile Exchange January 1, 2011. Textile Exchange initiated a revision of the standard in early 2012 with the goal to make the standard more robust and to include new chemical requirements. An International Working Group (IWG) of Certification Bodies was developed to revise the standard. The IWG members are Control Union Certifications, ICEA, IMO, Intertek, and SCS Global Services. A broader stakeholder group including retailers, brands, suppliers, and other industry members reviewed the standard to ensure it is a relevant and useful industry tool.
The latest version of the standard is effective as of August 5, 2014. The GRS v3 replaces all earlier versions of the Global Recycle Standard. Details of the transition and major updates from version 2.1 are found in the TE GRS Version 3 Transition document. Certification to the GRS is valid for one year and subject to annual renewals.