Revision

Green Button 3.0 - Becoming Better Together

Green Button 3.0 - Taking the next step. Together.

The Green Button has been regularly revised in consultation with key Green Button stakeholders (brands, producers, and civil society) since its conception in 2019. Now, the time has come for the next step in its evolution.

We want to address current challenges and make the certification future-proof. The Green Button 3.0 will bring new requirements, alongside simplification and clarity. As part of this process, it has been decided that Green Button 3.0 will focus on corporate due diligence obligations in the future. The former second pillar – the meta-label approach – will no longer be continued. Further information on how this influences the revision, please read the full “Terms of Reference” for the revision here.

This change will only take effect with the introduction of the new standard 3.0, expected from spring 2027. Until then, the current criteria overview criteria | Grüner Knopf will remain valid. As with previous revisions, there will be a transitory phase until the new standard enters into force – meaning that the Green Button evolution will be transparent, fair, and easy to plan for all parties involved.

What the Green Button stands for - Our Vision and Mission

Our Vision:

is an industry where sustainability is standard.

Our Mission:

is to transform the textile industry by driving responsible and sustainable business practices across global value chains, in partnership with manufacturers, workers and consumers.

Goals for the Green Button 3.0: Clear, Impactful, Future-proof

The Green Button is staying true to its mission: To transform textile supply chains through verifiable corporate due diligence. As the only certification of its kind to be accredited by the German national accreditation body (DAkkS), the Green Button addresses all brands who want to make their sustainably produced textiles known on the market.

The Green Button 3.0 will include necessary adjustments to ensure that the standard is future-proof. Important developments include:

Stronger emphasis on environmental due diligence

Climate, circular design, living wages and gender as focus topics

Strengthening alignment with international due diligence standards and legislation

Streamlining the indicators, making the Green Button Standard easier to understand, while providing a solid foundation for third-party evaluation

Upscaling internationally

Co-creation of the Green Button 3.0 through Stakeholder Dialogue

The revision of the Green Button Standard is a collaborative process. Between March 16 and June 17, 2026, more than 170 stakeholders submitted their feedback on the Green Button 3.0 Standard Draft. We would like to express our sincere thanks to all participants in the consultation process for their valuable contributions. It is only through their commitment that the Green Button remains feasible, effective, and future-proof!

Public Participation – The Consultation Phase

As part of the consultation, we offered a wide variety of feedback formats with the aim of involving as many relevant stakeholders as possible from across the entire textile supply chain in the revision process: As part of the public online consultation, detailed feedback could be submitted via the website or by email throughout the consultation period. An interactive webinar facilitated dialogue with international stakeholders along the supply chain. In-person roundtable discussions were held in Brussels with FairWear, in Bonn with the Helpdesk for Business and Human Rights, in Berlin with Dialogue and Impact for Sustainable Textiles, in Faisalabad with the Sustainable Terms of Trade Initiative and the Pakistan Textile Export Association, and in Lahore with GIZ Pakistan.

In these dialogue forums, representatives from brands, producers, standards organizations, labor unions, nongovernmental organizations, and consumers, as well as stakeholders from civil society and academia, shared their perspectives on the future of the Green Button.

For full transparency on scope, timeline and decision-making, the complete consultation framework is outlined in the Terms of Reference here.

Your Input In Action

In conjunction with the Green Button Standards Committee, feedback from the online consultation, webinars, and roundtable discussions is currently being incorporated into the Green Button 3.0 Standard Draft. To enhance feasibility and impact, the scheme owner, the BMZ, may also adapt the indicators in this phase to necessary overarching processes (e.g., regulations on sustainable public procurement).

Per the ISEAL Code of Good Practice, all feedback is documented anonymously. Once the feedback has been reviewed, the results of the consultation and how the feedback was addressed will be published here on the Green Button website.

Following the consultation, the scheme owner will decide on the final requirements based on the Standards Committees recommendations. The final Green Button 3.0 is scheduled to be presented in 2027, followed by a one-year implementation period for businesses.

This is how the Green Button 3.0 is taking shape through open dialogue, with many voices and a clear goal: work together to make textile supply chains more sustainable and equitable.