News
Press releases, materials for the press and information
You can download the latest press releases and notifications of upcoming events, as well as a photo library and a wide range of background information here. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Our Statement on the Green Button's OECD Alignment Assessment Result
We are happy to announce that the Green Button has successfully completed the full OECD Alignment Assessment. This includes the evaluation of our standards, governance, and implementation. We are proud to be the first certification scheme to complete this full assessment (fourth initiative overall).
We highly value the expertise and constructive feedback from the OECD during this process. We welcome the results which help us continually improve the Green Button certification scheme.
Green Button’s Strengths
The OECD found many strengths in the Green Button certification scheme. They noted that our standard is well-structured and comprehensive, addressing all six steps of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector. Our certification process and requirements for auditors are clear and well-defined. Companies view the Green Button Standard as ambitious, often improving their systems to meet the criteria.
Integration of Findings into Upcoming Revision
As a government-run certification, we are committed to continuous improvement. The findings from the OECD Assessment will guide our upcoming standards revision in 2025-27. We will thoroughly review our criteria to ensure they remain robust and reflect best practices in human rights and environmental due diligence (HREDD).
Some areas of improvement we will focus on include:
Strengthening the risk-based approach at the initial stage of our standard.
Emphasizing ongoing improvement through dynamic requirements.
Clarifying stakeholder engagement during the HREDD process.
Analyzing root causes and contributions to harm.
Encouraging companies to pool their leverage for more impactful measures.
A Rigorous Assurance System
Since 2019, Green Button has aimed to be one of the most robust certification schemes in the garment and textile sector. We work with the German national accreditation body for oversight and run a rigorous integrity program. We also provide mandatory HREDD training for new auditors and hold regular meetings with all auditors to ensure consistent application of the standard. In these, we have already taken up some of OECD’s suggestions to enhance our audit processes. Since the assessment, Green Button has published a complaints procedure available on its website.
Reinforcing Progress and Commitment
By integrating the OECD Assessment findings into our current audit process and future revision, we reinforce our commitment to maintaining high standards of sustainability and human rights compliance. Our goal is to build trust among companies, consumers, and other stakeholders.
Green Button remains dedicated to protecting people and the environment through stringent HREDD certification. By responding to the OECD Assessment, we aim to strengthen our progress and commitment, ensuring that Green Button continues to lead in the textile industry.
We would like to express our gratitude to the OECD once again for this meaningful process and look forward to enhancing our efforts to ensure that due diligence implementation is both effective and practical.
You can read the full report on the OECD website here.
Our statement is available as a PDF here.
Info webinar: Green Button
Invitation to the webinar: Green Button - Make sustainability visible and certify your products with the national textile certificate.
Are you interested in how you can have your responsible actions certified? Would you like to label your sustainability on a textile product? Are you concerned about the Supply Chain and Due Diligence Act (LkSG)?
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 to find out more?
When: Thursday, 26.06.2025 | 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Where: MS Teams
Note: In our calendar you can not only register for the webinar, but also for our question and answer session for interested companies, which we offer every two weeks on Thursdays at 9:30 a.m.
We look forward to meeting you!
Green Button Exchange 2025 – Shaping the Future of the Green Button Together
How can the increased requirements of the Green Button’s Level B be implemented? What role does audit fatigue play in corporate due diligence? How will the Green Button evolve in the future?
These and many other questions were at the center of this year’s Green Button Exchange on May 14, 2025.
A wide range of companies offering Green Button-certified products, the Green Button Secretariat, and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) came together in Berlin to engage in co-creative dialogue and collective learning as the Green Button Community. The exchange focused on two main themes: the increased requirements of Level B and the future of the Green Button.
Level B – Tackling Requirements Together
The third and final part of the masterclass on the new Level B requirements of the standard made it clear: requirements are increasing – and so is the need for guidance and exchange. In interactive workshops and group work, participants addressed the following key topics:
Transparency & Information Flow in Deep Supply Chains
A central topic of discussion was the challenge of mapping one’s supply chain beyond Tier 2. Several companies reported that their suppliers were not passing on the necessary information. One insight from the exchange: transparency and active support are seen as prerequisites for collaboration with suppliers to foster incentives, trust, and accountability.
Cooperation with External Stakeholders
Building strong partnerships – whether with trade unions, civil society, or industry initiatives – is crucial, especially for involving local stakeholders in production countries more effectively. Participants jointly discussed what equitable cooperation looks like and how suppliers can be actively supported rather than merely confronted with requirements.
Support of suppliers
Grievance Mechanisms & Gap Analysis
Grievance mechanisms such as the ACCORD were positively evaluated by the participating companies – yet they also raised questions: if no complaints are received, is that an indication that there are genuinely no complaints or rather a sign of insufficient awareness or accessibility? The discussion highlighted how important it is to train on-site workers to identify issues early and to educate them about the use and functioning of grievance mechanisms.
Looking Ahead: The Future Development of the Green Button
The afternoon was entirely dedicated to the future development of the Green Button. The discussion centered around the vision and mission of the label going forward, as well as the challenging topic of audit fatigue.
Vision and mission
In a co-creative brainstorming session, participants collaboratively developed initial ideas and shared their perspectives on the future vision and mission of the label. One thing became clear: the Green Button should continue to provide guidance, build trust, and drive impact – both for companies and for consumers.
The Role of Audit Fatigue in Corporate Due Diligence
Companies shared practical insights on the increasing audit burden faced by their suppliers. Discussions revolved around which processes contribute to this overload and how companies can relieve the pressure on their supply chain partners. The exchange highlighted both the benefits and the limitations of existing audit systems: reports from schemes such as amfori or SEDEX are used and considered helpful by companies. However, it also became clear that certain issues – for instance, the assurance of freedom of association – are not adequately addressed through traditional audit methods. Especially for non-certified suppliers, supplementary tools like questionnaires are necessary to gather relevant information.
The Green Button in the Current Regulatory Landscape
Alongside the content-related discussions, the BMZ provided an outlook on the future development of the Green Button within the evolving legislative and regulatory environment. The new BMZ leadership explicitly supports the regulatory anchoring of corporate due diligence – through instruments such as Germany’s Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) or the upcoming EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD).
The next major milestone has already been set: on September 9, 2025, the official revision of the standard will begin with the Green Button Summit. The new standard is scheduled for publication in 2027 and will be accompanied by a transition period of up to one and a half years for implementation.
Thank You to the Green Button Community!
The 2025 Exchange once again showed: the Green Button thrives on the ideas, questions, and suggestions of its community. The willingness to openly discuss challenges and jointly develop solutions sends a strong signal for a robust and transparent standard.
We thank all participants for their committed contributions, honest insights, and valuable input.
Green Button complaints procedure
All stakeholders can use the Green Button complaints procedure.
The complaints procedure serves as:
- Early warning system
- Instrument of proactive risk management
- Support for an active learning culture
- Guide to the fulfilment of (future) legal requirements
- A means of strengthening stakeholder relationships
Please note that this Green Button complaints procedure is not a grievance mechanism in textile supply chains. It cannot be used as a proof to fulfil the Green Button indicators. With the help of the complaints procedure, the Green Button aims to prevent or remedy damage in an impartial and consistent manner. Various stakeholders are involved in the system: The Green Button Secretariat, the Green Button issuing body and accredited certification bodies. An incoming complaint is processed by the actor for whom the complaint is most relevant. The following complaints fall within the scope of the Green Button reporting system:
- Green Button Standard: Violations of the standard, comments on the content or the development process of the standard
- Other normative documents of the Green Button: Complaints on the certification programme and the logo manual
- Complaints on the activities of the Green Button Secretariat or the scheme owner
- Accredited certification bodies provide information on their personnel and on companies that they have certified according to the Green Button standard
- The issuing body provides information on communication by certified companies about the Green Button and their use of the Green Button logo
The following complaints fall outside of the scope of the Green Button complaints procedure:
- Complaints on events that took place before a company's Green Button certification or after the certificate came to an end or was withdrawn
- Complaints submitted more than six months after the problem occurred
- Complaints that are malicious or harassing and are intended to gain a competitive advantage.
When dealing with complaints, the Green Button emphasises the importance of informing the complainant about every step in the process and its outcome and working together to find solutions to the problem in question.
The Green Button will regularly publish an update on the reports received and its resolution in anonymised, summarised form on its website.
Under this link you will find a summarised description of the reporting system for the Green Button.
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Workshop 3 (in person)
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Exchange, peer learning, impulses for implementation (workshop series)
For many of you, the second development stage B surveillance evaluation is just around the corner. On this occasion, we would like to invite you to our workshop series: 3 interactive workshops of 2 hours each are planned, in which Green Button companies can exchange views on the implementation of the stage B requirements and seek support for challenges. The events will focus on three subject areas in which experience has shown that companies face the greatest challenges and will establish links to various relevant stage B indicators. The number of participants is limited to 15 people per event. You can register for individual or all workshops. A preparation time of at least 1 hour should be planned, including participation in an anonymous survey prior to the workshops.
Target group: Green Button companies that have already completed the first surveillance evaluation
Dates:
- Workshop 1 (virtual): 18 March 2025 10.00 - 12. 00 AM
Focus: Progress in the strategic anchoring of due diligence in corporations
- Workshop 2 (virtual): 09 April 2025 10.00 - 12.00 AM
Focus: Impact-orientated improvement of (purchasing) practice
- Workshop 3 (in person): 14 May 2025 in Berlin (as part of the ‘Green Button exchange’, time to be confirmed)
Focus: Implementing measures in the (deeper) supply chain
Registration:
Please register for the workshops by e-mail (info@gruener-knopf.de).
The workshops are held in German. If you are an English-speaking company and need advice, please send us an e-mail and we will organise an exchange.
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Workshop 2 (virtual)
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Exchange, peer learning, impulses for implementation (workshop series)
For many of you, the second development stage B surveillance evaluation is just around the corner. On this occasion, we would like to invite you to our workshop series: 3 interactive workshops of 2 hours each are planned, in which Green Button companies can exchange views on the implementation of the stage B requirements and seek support for challenges. The events will focus on three subject areas in which experience has shown that companies face the greatest challenges and will establish links to various relevant stage B indicators. The number of participants is limited to 15 people per event. You can register for individual or all workshops. A preparation time of at least 1 hour should be planned, including participation in an anonymous survey prior to the workshops.
Target group: Green Button companies that have already completed the first surveillance evaluation
Dates:
- Workshop 1 (virtual): 18 March 2025 10.00 - 12. 00 AM
Focus: Progress in the strategic anchoring of due diligence in corporations
- Workshop 2 (virtual): 09 April 2025 10.00 - 12.00 AM
Focus: Impact-orientated improvement of (purchasing) practice
- Workshop 3 (in person): 14 May 2025 in Berlin (as part of the ‘Green Button exchange’, time to be confirmed)
Focus: Implementing measures in the (deeper) supply chain
Registration:
Please register for the workshops by e-mail (info@gruener-knopf.de).
The workshops are held in German. If you are an English-speaking company and need advice, please send us an e-mail and we will organise an exchange.
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Workshop 1 (virtual)
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Exchange, peer learning, impulses for implementation (workshop series)
For many of you, the second development stage B surveillance evaluation is just around the corner. On this occasion, we would like to invite you to our workshop series: 3 interactive workshops of 2 hours each are planned, in which Green Button companies can exchange views on the implementation of the stage B requirements and seek support for challenges. The events will focus on three subject areas in which experience has shown that companies face the greatest challenges and will establish links to various relevant stage B indicators. The number of participants is limited to 15 people per event. You can register for individual or all workshops. A preparation time of at least 1 hour should be planned, including participation in an anonymous survey prior to the workshops.
Target group: Green Button companies that have already completed the first surveillance evaluation
Dates:
- Workshop 1 (virtual): 18 March 2025 10.00 - 12. 00 AM
Focus: Progress in the strategic anchoring of due diligence in corporations
- Workshop 2 (virtual): 09 April 2025 10.00 - 12.00 AM
Focus: Impact-orientated improvement of (purchasing) practice
- Workshop 3 (in person): 14 May 2025 in Berlin (as part of the ‘Green Button exchange’, time to be confirmed)
Focus: Implementing measures in the (deeper) supply chain
Registration:
Please register for the workshops by e-mail (info@gruener-knopf.de). The registration deadline for Workshop 1 is 5 March 2025.
The workshops are held in German. If you are an English-speaking company and need advice, please send us an e-mail and we will organise an exchange.
‘Green Button Exchange’
This year, the ‘Green Button Exchange’ will take place on 14 May 2025 from 10.00 AM - 4.30 PM in Berlin. Take the opportunity to exchange ideas with other licensed companies. More information on the agenda and registration will follow. On 15 May 2025 from 9.00 AM - 4.30 PM, we also invite you to participate in interesting keynotes and workshops at the open section of the Members' Meeting of the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (PST).
The Green Button at the 2025 OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector
A Green Button delegation attended the 2025 OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector and spent three intense days in Paris engaging in insightful discussions, contributed actively to sessions, carved out new and strengthened existing partnerships.
The Green Button played an active role in two sessions on the OECD Forum:
OECD Alignment Assessments
Our Head of Secretariat Christine Moser-Priewich, among Luke Smitham of Kumi Consulting, Emily Norton of the OECD and Annabel Meurs of Fair Wear Foundation, spoke as a panelist on the OECD Alignment Assessments. Here, we shared our insights from the Green Button assessment and emphasized that implementation assessments are a crucial step in measuring and advancing sustainability standards. They bring transparency, enable a sound comparison between initiatives, and provide clear guidance for companies and stakeholders alike. Our key takeaway here: The true value of the OECD Alignment Assessments lies in its implementation assessments that go beyond desktop assessments of what is written on paper to track real-life implementation of meaningful Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD).
OECD Monitoring & Evaluation Framework
This session introduced a sectoral approach for measuring and understanding impact. This framework was further enriched through first data points provided by research from Cornell University as well as contributions from Green Button companies.
Our goal remains to work with strong partners to promote sustainable supply chains and HREDD. We hope that some of the sparks from Paris will continue to spread in the coming weeks. For instance, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations released a Joint Statement on the Need for Legal Certainty and Pragmatic Implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework.
Here you can find the links to the recordings of the sessions:
Click here for the session on the OECD Alignment Assessment!
Clicke here for the session on the OECD Monitoring & Evaluation Framework!
Joint Statement on the Need for Legal Certainty and Pragmatic Implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework
Today, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations – including amfori, Cascale, Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), ETI Norway, ETI Sweden, ETI Denmark, Fair Labor Association, Fair Wear, German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles, and Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP) – release a joint statement on the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework in light of the upcoming Omnibus legislation expected to amend key sustainability regulations.
The EU Commission is expected to present the Omnibus legislation in the coming weeks, aiming to enhance Europe's competitiveness and streamline key sustainability regulations. This package is likely to include changes to the EU Taxonomy, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) – all of which form the backbone of Europe’s sustainability framework.
As discussions progress, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations reaffirm their strong support for a robust and pragmatic implementation of the EU Sustainability due diligence framework. They stress the need for legal certainty and a level playing field across global supply chains.
Safeguarding Progress: A Call for Stability and Legal Certainty
The joint statement reflects the organisations' years of experience in supporting businesses as they integrate ESG due diligence into their supply chains.
"The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, as adopted, is a milestone that will scale up due diligence efforts and reinforce alignment with international standards such as the OECD Guidelines, the UN Guiding Principles (UNGPs), and ILO Conventions.”, the joint statement reads.
Key Recommendations to the European Commission
The signatory organisations call on the European Commission to:
- Ensure a pragmatic and effective implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework
- Provide legal certainty, enabling businesses to operate effectively within the EU market and ensuring global trading partners can confidently engage with EU businesses
- Avoid deregulation under the guise of moving “bolder, simpler, faster,” as this could weaken sustainability commitments
The Green Button alongside ten other organisations remain committed to supporting businesses as they navigate due diligence obligations and continue advocating for a balanced, legally sound, and future-proof sustainability framework.
