Good Cashmere Standard 2026: Updated Animal Welfare and Traceability Requirements for Cashmere B2B Programs

What the Good Cashmere Standard is, and who maintains it

The Good Cashmere Standard (GCS) is an independent standard for cashmere fibre, set and administered by the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF). The standard defines animal welfare, environmental, and chain-of-custody criteria for raw cashmere, and provides a labelled pathway for downstream products. The AbTF publishes the standard documents and the list of certified farms, dehairing facilities and brands. 1

In 2026, the AbTF released an updated version of the Good Cashmere Standard with refined animal welfare criteria and expanded traceability requirements for the dehairing and trading stages. The updates apply to all newly certified operations from 1 January 2026; existing certified operations transition during 2026 in line with the AbTF’s published timetable. 1

Where to confirm the current version

The most reliable reference for the standard’s current text, the transition timetable and the list of certified operations is the AbTF’s own publication. Earlier reference materials, including older blog posts or buyer guides, may not reflect the 2026 revisions. When confirming compliance or preparing an inquiry, treat the AbTF site as the canonical source rather than secondary summaries. 1

Practical areas updated for 2026

Based on the AbTF’s published updates, three areas are most relevant to a cashmere B2B buyer:

1. Animal welfare criteria — the standard already covers grazing, shelter, handling and shearing. The 2026 update raises expectations on cold-weather shelter, the timing and method of fibre collection, and the documentation of veterinary care. The objective is to align GCS with broader animal welfare standard practice without changing the underlying principle of combing rather than shearing. 1

2. Chain-of-custody documentation — the updated standard expands the requirement to record fibre origin, herd type, and the dehairing facility for each lot traded under the standard. The records must be auditable; the AbTF publishes the audit frequency and the certification body’s scope. 1

3. Brand and retailer obligations — brands and retailers using the GCS label must keep the labelled fibre traceable through processing stages. This is the practical impact on a private-label or retail program sourcing GCS-aligned cashmere. 1

These are administrative controls, not a guarantee of any specific outcome. The actual scope, evidence and certification body decision depend on the AbTF’s published rules and the buyer’s product category.

What a B2B buyer can confirm with a cashmere supplier

For a private-label, retail, or wholesale program using GCS-aligned cashmere, the following records are typically worth confirming in writing:

Area	Practical record to ask for	Why it is useful now
Certification status	GCS certificate number and scope, valid until date	Confirms the operation is currently certified
Origin	Region, herd type, list of certified farms	Supports fibre origin claims and DPP-style records
Dehairing	Certified dehairing facility name and address	Demonstrates chain-of-custody compliance
Lot reference	Internal lot, bale or shipment reference linked to origin records	Allows traceability per shipment
Brand licence	Brand or retailer’s own GCS label licence number, if applicable	Confirms the downstream user is licensed to use the mark
Documentation owner	Which party is responsible for each record	Clarifies the data request process

The actual scope depends on the buyer’s product, destination and brand policy. Treat this list as a starting point for an inquiry, not as a standard checklist.

How GCS relates to other cashmere frameworks

GCS is one of several frameworks a cashmere buyer may need to evaluate together. Each framework has its own scope:

• Textile Exchange Recycled Cashmere Standard — for cashmere fibre recovered from pre- or post-consumer textile waste.
• OEKO-TEX Standard 100 — for finished textile products at the consumer level.
• EU CSDDD / DPP — chain-of-custody records for the largest companies selling textile products in the EU.

A cashmere supplier may participate in one or several frameworks. The buyer should clarify which framework applies to each material or product, rather than assume a single certification covers everything.

References

1. Aid by Trade Foundation, The Good Cashmere Standard, accessed 28 August 2026.

For practical context on the broader EU regulatory landscape affecting cashmere, see the EU CSDDD for textile supply chains and the EU Textile Digital Product Passport update.