EU Green Claims Directive for Textile Suppliers: What Changes in September 2026

What the EU Green Claims Directive is, and when it applies to textile claims

The EU Green Claims Directive is part of the European Commission’s 2023 consumer-empowerment package. It was adopted in 2024 to harmonise the substantiation and presentation of voluntary environmental marketing claims on products sold in the EU. Member States transpose the directive into national law and apply it from 27 September 2026. 1

For textile products, including cashmere garments, yarn and accessories, the directive requires that any environmental claim — “sustainable”, “eco-friendly”, “natural”, “biodegradable”, “carbon-neutral”, “100% cashmere”, and so on — be substantiated against a recognised assessment method and presented in a way that does not mislead the consumer. The directive is enforced by national consumer protection authorities. 1

What the directive does not do

It is worth being explicit about the limits of the Green Claims Directive so the buyer and supplier do not over-interpret it:

• The directive does not ban natural fibres like cashmere. Natural-fibre claims are permitted when substantiated.
• The directive does not create a single EU-wide label. Existing frameworks (EU Ecolabel, OEKO-TEX, GCS) continue to apply in parallel.
• The directive does not impose LCA on every product. Smaller-volume and B2B-only communications have different thresholds. The exact thresholds are in the directive and should be checked with the buyer’s compliance team. 1

Practical claims the directive covers in a cashmere context

The directive addresses how environmental claims are made, not whether natural fibres are used. The following examples illustrate the most common cashmere-relevant claims that must be substantiated from September 2026:

Claim type	Typical use on cashmere	Substantiation expectation
”Natural fibre” or “100% cashmere”	On packaging, hangtags, brand websites	Fibre composition declaration, supported by production records
”Sustainable” or “responsibly sourced”	On marketing copy and brand pages	Chain-of-custody documentation, certification reference, audit results
”Biodegradable”	On product pages and care guides	Fibre behaviour evidence for the actual construction (pure cashmere vs. blends)
“Carbon-neutral” or “low-carbon”	On product launch pages and PR	Quantified emissions, third-party verification or an LCA reference
”Eco-friendly production”	On brand stories and supplier pages	Specific process records (water, energy, chemical use) for the facility in question
”Recycled” or “recyclable”	On packaging or product description	Material composition records, recycled-content standards reference

These are not exhaustive. The directive applies to any environmental claim made on or in connection with a textile product placed on the EU market. 1

What a cashmere supplier can expect from EU buyers in 2026

From September 2026, an EU buyer placing a cashmere product on the market may ask a supplier to:

• Confirm which environmental claims are being made on or for the product.
• Provide the supporting evidence in writing (composition, origin, audit, certification).
• Adjust or remove claims that cannot be substantiated.
• Restrict use of generic sustainability language (e.g. “eco”, “green”) unless backed by a recognised framework.

Suppliers can prepare by listing the environmental claims currently on their marketing material, and matching each one to a record the factory can already produce. Where no record exists, the claim should be revised or removed before the September 2026 enforcement date.

Records a cashmere supplier can already maintain

The records below are useful starting points. Whether each is appropriate depends on the product, the claim and the buyer’s compliance policy:

Record	Format	Why it is useful now
Fibre composition declaration	Per style, per lot	Substantiates “100% cashmere” or blend claims
Origin statement	Per lot, with region and herd	Substantiates “Inner Mongolia cashmere” claims
Certification reference	Certificate number, scope, validity	Substantiates “Good Cashmere Standard”, “OEKO-TEX” etc.
Audit results	Most recent facility audit summary	Supports chain-of-custody claims
Chemical inventory	Approved substance list per process	Supports environmental process claims
Care guidance	Approved care label wording	Supports product-use claims
Documentation owner	Internal record of who owns each document	Supports audit response

The actual scope depends on the claim being made. The substantive principle is that any environmental claim must be supported by evidence the supplier or buyer can produce.

How the directive relates to other cashmere frameworks

The Green Claims Directive sits alongside the EU Digital Product Passport, the EU CSDDD and the various private cashmere certifications. The directive does not replace any of these frameworks; it sets the minimum standard for how environmental claims are made and substantiated. A cashmere supplier participating in GCS or providing EU-aligned product records will be in a better position than one relying on informal sustainability language.

For context, see the EU Textile Digital Product Passport update and the EU CSDDD for textile supply chains. For specific legal advice on the directive’s application to a particular product or claim, refer to qualified advisers in the relevant Member State.

References

1. European Commission, Green Claims Directive, accessed 28 August 2026.