VAUDE CSR-Report – VAUDE receives the "Grüner Knopf" certification seal for 90 % of the current apparel collection

Minister Müller presents state textile seal "Grüner Knopf"

Dr. Gerd Müller (Federal Minister for Economic Development and Cooperation) presented the new seal together with Dr. Antje von Dewitz (CEO VAUDE), Heinrich Bedford-Strohm (Bishop of the Protestant Church in Bavaria) and Thomas Linemayr (Tchibo Managing Director) at a Federal Press Conference in Berlin. At the start there will be 27 companies that have successfully passed the strict requirements of the textile seal. Among them was VAUDE, which from the outset advocated a comprehensive, independent seal.

To the official website (German)

»We are experiencing that more and more people wish to buy clothes with a clear conscience, but are finding it difficult to recognize ecologically and fairly produced products. The meaning of the various certification seals is also confusing. As a state-supervised certification seal, the Grüner Knopf offers consumers orientation for responsible shopping. We are delighted to be involved from the start and to receive the Grüner Knopf certification seal for 90 % of VAUDE's current apparel collection.«

Antje von Dewitz, CEO VAUDE

With a deep level of commitment from Germany’s Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development, Gerd Müller, the federal government has created the state textile certification seal Grüner Knopf to label socially and ecologically produced textiles. The global textile label is intended to increase the visibility of these products for consumers and provide better orientation for textile purchases. Products with the new label must be manufactured in accordance with criteria laid out by the state. At its official launch on September 9th, the Grüner Knopf certification seal will be visible to consumers for online sales of VAUDE Green Shape products – gradually all certified VAUDE products will be labeled with the logo in walk-in stores.

The Grüner Knopf was presented today at the Federal Press Conference in Berlin (from left: Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, Thomas Linemayr, Antje von Dewitz, Gerd Müller).

»I’m just thrilled that as an innovative outdoor outfitter, VAUDE has joined the Green Button program right from its inception. VAUDE is a pioneer for sustainability across the entire textile industry. As an active founding member of our textile association, VAUDE has played a leading role for years and has demonstrated that performance apparel and sustainability can go hand in hand. The fact that such a well-recognized trailblazer for sustainability is participating in the Green Button confirms that we’re on the right path,« says Dr. Gerd Müller, Federal Minister for Economic Development and Cooperation.

Jan Lorch, Managing Director Sales and CSR at VAUDE:

»As a founding member of the Textile Alliance, we have long been committed to finding cross-industry solutions with the goal of making global textile manufacturing more environmentally friendly and fair. We strongly welcome the fact that the Grüner Knopf certification seal has been created with a deep level of commitment from the Minister of Development Gerd Müller. We hope that many companies will assume responsibility, join the program and have their products certified.«

Partnership for Sustainable Textiles & Grüner Knopf

As a founding member of the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles, VAUDE has been working since 2014 to ensure that internationally recognized environmental and social standards are implemented throughout the value chain of textile production. VAUDE is not only pursuing its own vision of production that is as sustainable as possible. As part of the larger textile industry, it recognizes its obligation to contributing to a change in the framework conditions across all sectors and to finding more environmentally compatible and socially fair solutions for practical use. Within this context, VAUDE recognizes that orientation for purchasing sustainable textiles is a particularly important measure for consumers and has long supported a seal such as the Grüner Knopf as a state certification seal for textiles.

Hilke Patzwall, CSR Manager at VAUDE:

»For us, the state certification of VAUDE products with the Grüner Knopf confirms that we took the right path 10 years ago with our strict Green Shape criteria, which we imposed on ourselves. We are delighted that the majority of VAUDE products have now been independently certified.«

The VAUDE Green Shape Label

As early as 2009, VAUDE began to define its own standard for sustainable products in the absence of a comprehensive textile seal. With Green Shape, a label was developed that has become well established in the industry.

The criteria for assessing Green Shape products are strict and transparent. They are monitored regularly and cover the entire life cycle of the product – from design and production to maintenance, repair and recycling. The use of environmentally friendly materials, the longevity of products, the avoidance of harmful chemicals and compliance with social standards in the global supply chain are all important aspects of the label. Internationally recognized standards such as the bluesign® System, the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) and the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), which are now recognized in the Grüner Knopf, also play a central role.

In the current collection for autumn/winter 2019/20, 90 % of VAUDE apparel bears the Green Shape label and 75 % of all VAUDE products, (clothing along with hardware such as backpacks, bags, sleeping bags and tents) are Green Shape. All of these products will now receive the Grüner Knopf state seal.