RCS - Recycled Claim Standard
Also known as: Recycled Claim Standard, RCS 100, RCS Blended
Textile Exchange chain-of-custody standard that solely verifies the amount and traceability of recycled fibres, without environmental or social requirements.
Description
The Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) is the "recycling counterpart" of OCS for organic fibres and is also managed by Textile Exchange. It solely verifies that a textile actually contains the stated share of recycled fibres and that these are traceable along the supply chain. Environmental or social criteria are not part of it - that is the job of the much stricter GRS.
Two variants exist: RCS 100 for products with at least 95 % recycled content and RCS Blended for products with 5 - 94.9 %. Traceability is ensured through transaction certificates along the full chain, and annual audits by accredited certifiers are mandatory.
RCS is often used for rPET polyester in sportswear and fashion, frequently combined with other standards. For brands RCS is a way to substantiate recycling claims without the full GRS effort. For consumers an RCS label means: the recycled content is verified, but dyeing, chemistry and working conditions are not part of the certification.
Properties
| Issuer | Textile Exchange (USA) |
|---|---|
| Scope | Traceability of recycled fibres (5 - 100 %) |
| Label | RCS 100 or RCS Blended + percentage |
Related product categories
Sources & references
2- Textile Exchange RCS Textile Exchange https://textileexchange.org/recycled-claim-standard/
- Wikipedia: Textile Exchange Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile_Exchange
