Joint round table with Fair Wear. See the invitation for details here.

The Green Button is currently being revised. As part of this process, it has been decided that Green Button 3.0 will focus in the future on corporate due diligence obligations. The former second pillar – the meta-label approach – will no longer be continued. This change will only take effect with the introduction of the new standard, expected from spring 2027. Until then, Green Button 2.0 will remain valid, meaning there will be no short-term changes.

Why this change is necessary

New legal regulations such as the Empowering Consumers Directive (EmpCo) and its German implementation in the Act against Unfair Competition (UWG) require the discontinuation of the meta-label approach. The UWG sets high requirements for the quality and credibility of certification labels.

Under the previous meta-label approach of the Green Button, third-party certification labels were accepted as recognition for production processes. However, the Green Button is not able to verify or ensure the compliance of these third-party certification labels with the requirements of the UWG. Companies themselves are responsible for assessing whether third-party certification labels comply with the UWG. In order to avoid legal risks and to ensure the legal compliance of the Green Button, the meta-label approach will therefore not be continued in the Standard 3.0. The Green Button will instead be designed to function independently of other certification labels.

The requirements of the planned Green Claims Directive, which aims to prevent greenwashing, are also not compatible with the current meta-label approach. Even though it is currently unclear when the Green Claims Directive will be introduced due to the suspension of negotiations, the Green Button is already intended to address the upcoming requirements.

Future role of certification labels in Green Button 3.0

Corporate due diligence processes have always been and remain at the core of the Green Button. The Green Button was the first textile certification label to introduce these processes and to demonstrate in practice that they are feasible and auditable. The discontinuation of the meta-label approach reinforces this key pillar and reduces complexity. At the same time, the Green Button remains an on-product label, as this is an essential feature to continue providing guidance to consumers.

Going on, certification labels will continue to play an important role in promoting sustainability in supply chains, even without the meta-label approach. They remain an important building block for corporate due diligence processes, as audit reports continue to provide valuable information for risk management. Without a meta-label approach, however, companies can select certification labels and robust audits in line with their risk profile and other criteria, allowing for more efficient use of resources and potentially also cost savings.

Accordingly, the consultation on the Green Button Standard 3.0 in spring and summer 2026 will focus on requirements for corporate due diligence processes.

We look forward to your feedback and to your continued engagement in the Green Button community!

As a government-run certification label, our aim is to take up current regulatory developments, embed the Green Button in this new environment in a meaningful way and thus make it fit for the future. The requirements for fibre and material use in Green Button products will therefore remain voluntary. The reason for this is the continuing lack of clarity with regard to various EU regulations, such as the EU Ecodesign Regulation, whose specific effects on the requirements for the fibre and material composition of products on the European market are not yet fully foreseeable. The Green Button would like to avoid setting requirements that would soon have to be adapted again or would not be in line with future legal requirements.

The previously planned transitional period until 31 July 2026 will therefore no longer apply. The requirements for the fibre and material use of Green Button Standard 2.0.1 will not come into force.

As part of its requirements for corporate due diligence processes, the Green Button continues to require companies to continuously increase the use of sustainable materials and to analyze material and product risks throughout the entire supply chain.

If you have any questions or queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@gruener-knopf.de.

Four more certification labels have successfully passed the benchmarking process and are thus established as recognised certification labels for production process requirements (meta-label approach) under Green Button 2.0.

From now on, the following certification labels will be accepted:

• Blue Angel: For the recognition of fiber and material usage for the use of recycled fibers as well as plant-based, animal-based, and man-made fibers.
• Green Shape: For the recognition of wet processes and fiber and material usage for the use of plant-based, animal-based, and man-made fibers.
• Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®): For the recognition of fiber and material usage for the use of recycled fibers.
• Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification – PEFC: For the recognition of fiber and material usage for the use of recycled fibers.

These newly evaluated certification labels complement the already published recognised certification labels:

• bluesign®PRODUCT: For the recognition scope wet processes. For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of virgin polyester and down.
• Cotton Made in Africa (CmiA): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of plant-based fibres
• Cradle to Cradle Certified®: For the recognition scope wet processes
• Fairtrade Cotton: For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of plant-based fibres
• Fairtrade Textile Production: For the recognition scope manufacturing and wet processes
• Fair Wear Foundation: For the recognition scope manufacturing
• Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS): For the recognition scope manufacturing and wet processes. For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of plant-based and animal fibres and for the use of chemical fibres in a proportion greater than 10% and less than 30% by weight
• Global Recycled Standard (GRS): For the recognition scope wet processes in combination with Oeko-Tex Standard 100 and for fibre and material use for the use of recycled man-made and plant-based fibres
• Naturtextil IVN zertifiziert BEST: For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of plant-based and animal fibres
• Organic Content Standard (OCS): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of plant-based and animal fibres as well as regenerated fibres
• OEKO-TEX® MADE IN GREEN: For the recognition scope manufacturing and wet processes. For the recognition scope of fibre and material use for the use of virgin polyester (product class 1-3) or the use of organic cotton
• OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100: For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of virgin polyester (product class 1-3) as well as for the use of recycled fibres and materials
• OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100 „organic“: For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of organic cotton
• OEKO-TEX® ORGANIC COTTON: For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of organic cotton
• Recycled Claim Standard (RCS): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of recycled man-made and plant-based fibres
• Responsible Down Standard (RDS): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of down.
• Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of animal fibres
• Responsible Wool Standard (RWS): For the recognition scope fibre and material use for the use of animal fibres
• SA8000: For the recognition scope manufacturing

All certification labels recognised for Green Button regarding the supply chain levels wet processing and manufacturing as well as fibre and material use can be found  here. The list will be further supplemented at a later date. This document lists all fibres and materials approved for the Green Button 2.0, combined with the respective recognised certification labels. 

To meet the Green Button  requirements for production processes and to be able to label products, companies must demonstrate recognised certification labels for the areas wet processes and manufacturing. In addition, they can demonstrate sustainable raw material extraction for the area of fibre and material use through recognised certification labels. Prior to this, companies must demonstrate compliance with the requirements for corporate due diligence processes within a Green Button audit.

Recognition of the aforementioned certification labels is the result of a recognition process outlined in this fact sheet as well as in Green Button Standard 2.0: Process and Requirements for the Recognition of Certification Labels. Newly recognised certification labels were assessed prior to their recognition to determine whether they met the content requirements of the Green Button Standard as well as the eligibility requirements, which include requirements for their credibility. The recognition of the certification labels issued by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is valid until the next revision of the Green Button. Should the certification label itself undergo changes, it is to be reviewed in accordance with the Green Button Standard whether the recognition needs to be elicited in a new benchmarking.

Documents for download:

• Guidance to the list of approved fibres and materials including recognised certification labels (This list will be continuously updated and added to) (voluntary)
• Overview recognised certification labels (this list will be continuously updated and added to)

Are you interested in how you can have your responsible actions certified? Would you like to label your sustainability on a textile product?
In our free and non-binding webinar, we would like to give you an overview of how the Green Button Standard combines the requirements for the sustainable manufacturing of products with the requirements for corporate due diligence processes. Curious?

When: Thursday, 26.03.2026  | 11 - 11:45 Uhr (CET)
Where: Online (Microsoft Teams)

Register here

“It’s not just a conference, it’s a community”. 

These words — and a day full of inspiring panels, valuable insights, and enriching discussions — shaped the Green Button Summit 2025 on 2 December 2025.

In front of more than 100 representatives from the textile industry, production countries, civil society, and academia, Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Reem Alabali Radovan opened the Summit in Berlin, officially launching the next development phase of the Green Button. The aim is to anchor the Green Button even more effectively, internationally, and sustainably within the textile landscape.
“The Green Button shall continue to be a reliable label for sustainable textiles in the future,” the Minister emphasized, underlining the strong commitment of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) to sustainable textile supply chains.

Panel: The role of responsible business conduct for resilient supply chains

This commitment also shaped the first panel discussion. Together with Parliamentary State Secretary Dr. Bärbel Kofler, Allan Lerberg Jørgensen (Head of the Centre for Responsible Business Conduct at the OECD), Archana Kotecha (Founder of the Remedy Project and ReAct Asia), and Mathias Diestelmann (Managing Director of Brands Fashion) discussed the key question:
How do responsible business practices — and labels such as the Green Button — contribute to stable and future-proof global supply chains?

The discussion was lively and multi-layered. Despite the different stakeholder groups and interests, all panelists agreed on two central points:

• Human rights and environmental due diligence are cornerstones of sustainable textile supply chains. Companies that view corporate responsibility merely as compliance put their reputation at risk and expose themselves to financial and legal risks.
• Responsible action is not a “nice to have” and should not be tied solely to regulation. 
   

Voices from the Panel: 

Dr. Bärbel Kofler: “It's more than the topic of due diligence. It's an issue of how we as people living in a democracy are addressing challenges. Are we going to fall back in our patterns where we are not willing to look on the root causes of challenges or are we trying to address challenges in a positive way?” 

Archana Kotecha: “We cannot allow ourselves to be guided only by profitability when real people are facing real risks. As we are speaking, Asia is still recovering from severe floods that have affected entire countries, communities, and industries. Whether we like it or not, these are harsh realities — and they require responsible action, not endless debate. We must not get caught up in the question of whether responsibility is profitable, when vulnerability and climate impacts are already shaping lives and livelihoods.”

Allan Lerberg Jørgensen: “Due diligence is a two-way street. It’s not just about me pushing requirements onto you – I also need to make sure that my business model is aligned with what I’m asking for. Initiatives like the Green Button play a crucial role in translating international due diligence standards into practice.”

Mathias Diestelmann: “Because as a human being we have one gift and this is talking to each other and hopefully also understanding each other. […] I am not saying that we can solve every problem, that for sure not, but we can at least listen and then take this into our considerations of how we can amend it.”

The new Standards Committee: expertise for the future of the standard

Another highlight and a key driver of the Green Button’s revision was the introduction of the new independent, international Standards Committee. Under the leadership of its Chair, Michael Windfuhr (German Institute for Human Rights), the Committee members Johanna von Stechow (Tchibo), Matthijs Crietee (Sustainable Terms of Trade Initiative), Dr. Sanchita Saxena (UC Berkeley), and Silke Düwel-Rieth (WWF Germany) will provide expert advice to BMZ as the scheme owner during the revision process.

The Standards Committee brings together expertise from business, academia, civil society, human rights, and environmental protection — a real added value for the further development of the standard.

Voices from the Standards Committee members:

Johanna von Stechow: “The first advantage of implementing the Green Button was having the internal knowledge about due diligence and also the responsibility about due diligence was extended from our corporate responsibility department to other departments and that still until today helps me with my daily work.” 

Dr. Sanchita Saxena: “I think we've often been guilty of a one-size-fits-all solution. That's not reality. There's a wealth of information in communities throughout the Global South. They are actually the closest to what is happening. So, if we actually tap into their expertise, their knowledge, we'd be surprised at the kinds of solutions that can actually emerge from those conversations.”

Azizullah Goheer (stellvertretend für Matthijs Crietee): “There should be a win-win situation and shared responsibility — not only for the risks, but also for the rewards — so that we can create a better environment and enable further investment on both sides.”

Silke Düwel-Rieth: “It’s important that there is the connection between the environmental due diligence and the human rights due diligence because having a nature where people can also live in and where life feels good is also very strongly connected.” 

Michael Windfuhr: “The revision of the Green Button Standard was and is a learning process which hopefully has increased a lot in the sector.”

A closer look at the revision

In their expert input, Director General Dr. Ariane Hildebrandt and Head of Unit Lucia de Carlo provided initial insights into the upcoming focus areas of the revision:

• Stronger integration of environmental and climate protection topics (in particular circular economy)
• Alignment with international frameworks and guidelines such as the OECD Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct, EU legislation, and the ISEAL Code of Good Practice
• Internationalisation of the Green Button through stronger cooperation with international companies and production countries
• Greater impact, simplification, and practical relevance for companies through a lean and clearly structured standard, enabling more efficient and effective implementation
   

What’s next?

With the Summit, the revision process officially begins, followed by the public consultation phase next year. Companies, producers, workers, consumers, civil society, and academia are invited to contribute their perspectives, expectations, and interests. The revision is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
The publication of the new Green Button Standard is planned for 2027.

Further information:

https://gruener-knopf.de/en/revision

https://gruener-knopf.de/en/standards-committee

Photos ©Julia Merkel