N23

Vegan fashion – clothes, shoes and accessories that contain no leather, fur, wool, skin, exotic skins or any other animal-derived fabric – is revolutionising the way that we shop and dress.

As more and more people vow never to clothe themselves in cruelty, retailers and designers are meeting the demand for animal-friendly clothes in style.

Although you can easily find fashionable animal-free products in many high-street stores, some companies go further, either by ensuring that everything they sell is 100 per cent vegan or by clearly sign-posting their vegan products. The “PETA-Approved Vegan” logo is a way of recognising these progressive compassionate businesses – and helping ethical consumers identify where to shop with confidence, safe in the knowledge that they’re not supporting the exploitation of animals.

Check the listing of brands HERE

About PETA

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Foundation is a UK-based charity dedicated to establishing and protecting the rights of all animals.

Like humans, animals are capable of suffering and have interests in leading their own lives; therefore, they are not ours to use – for experimentation, food, clothing, entertainment or any other reason. PETA and our affiliates around the world educate policymakers and the public about cruelty to animals and promote an understanding of the right of all animals to be treated with respect.

https://www.peta.org/about-peta/contact-peta/

Continental Clothing Co. products have been tested and certified under OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 Class I Annex 6 by Shirley Technologies in England.

The OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 is an independent testing and certification system for textile raw materials, intermediate and end products at all stages of production.

The testing for harmful substances always focuses on the actual use of the textile. The more intensive the skin contact of a product, the stricter the human ecological requirements to be met. The Continental Clothing certificate meets Class I criteria for textile items for babies and toddlers up to 3 years, the highest of the four classes of certification.

The requirement for certification of textile products according to OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 is that all components of an item have to comply with the required criteria without exception – that means in addition to the outer material also sewing threads, linings, prints etc. as well as non-textile accessories such as buttons, zip fasteners, rivets etc.

On the basis of its comprehensive and strict catalogue of measures, with several hundred regulated individual substances, the STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® takes account of:

- Important legal regulations, such as banned Azo colourants, formaldehyde, pentachlorophenol, cadmium, nickel, etc.
- Numerous harmful chemicals, even if they are not yet legally regulated.
- Requirements of Annexes XVII and XIV of the European Chemicals Regulation REACh as well as of the ECHA SVHC Candidate List insofar as they are assessed by expert groups of the OEKO-TEX® Association to be relevant for fabrics, textiles, garments or accessories. Discussions and developments that are considered to be relevant are taken into account as quickly and effectively as possible through updates to the STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® requirements.
- Requirements from the US Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) regarding lead.
- Numerous also environmentally relevant substance classes

Confidence in Textiles – that has been the motto of the independent testing for harmful substances according to OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 for textile products of all types which pose no risk whatsoever to health since 1992.

The OEKO-TEX® label indicates the additional benefits of tested safety for skin-friendly clothing and other textiles to interested end users. The test label therefore provides an important decision-making tool for purchasing textiles.

Fair Wear is an independent, non-profit organisation striving to improve working conditions in the textile industry. The foundation is an initiative by trade organisations in the textile sector, trade unions and NGO's.

Fair Wear verifies that member companies implement the Code of Labour Practice along their supply chain, and checks compliance by monitoring audits and remediation efforts. Annual reporting by member companies and by Fair Wear itself promotes transparency at all levels.

The annual performance check reports are available on the Fair Wear Foundation page here.

Continental Clothing Co. has been a member of Fair Wear since 2. October 2006.

>>> Communication by Resellers <<<

1. Resellers of Fair Wear member brands can only communicate about Fair Wear membership if they explicitly name the company or brand. For example,‘We sell products made by CONTINENTAL CLOTHING, a member of Fair Wear.’;

2. Resellers of Fair Wear member brands can use Fair Wear logo when they provide general information about Fair Wear in the ‘About’ section of a website or wherever they explain their different labels and initiatives;

3. Under no circumstances may third parties (retailers, resellers or customers, etc.) add on-garment communication about Fair Wear themselves without mentioning the member brand.

PLEASE READ Fair Wear Information for Resellers and Retailers.