Around 25 representatives from prominent textile manufacturers and commercial organisations were given an informative insight into the international testing and certification system of the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 on November 15 in New York.

During the meeting, as an introduction to the topic of human ecology and product security, author Patricia Aburdene introduced her new book Megatrends 2010”. Aburdene used the term value-driven consumer” to cover the segment of the population which feels passionately about the environment. Ms Aburdene estimates that there are around 63 million of these value-driven or conscious consumers in the USA. She also regards them as a major target group for products tested and certified for harmful substances according to the Oeko-Tex Standard 100. Ms Aburdene predicts that there will be a development in the USA over the next few years similar to that experienced in Europe at the close of the 20th century, where ecological awareness and a healthy lifestyle has become a matter of importance for a broad section of the population, having originally been the concern of a relatively small group.

Raimar Freitag, general secretary of the International Oeko-Tex Association, went on to underline this thesis using the constantly increasing number of Oeko-Tex certificates and companies involved in the system. Since 1992, around 50,000 certificates have been issued worldwide to approximately 6,500 companies in 68 countries, with the majority of certificates being given in Europe and Asia. Over the coming years, a far-reaching information campaign aims to ensure that the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 also becomes increasingly established amongst American companies, whose imports of preliminary products and end products from Asia currently amount to around 70 %.