ORGANIC cotton bag made from GOTS certified organic cotton

GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard)
[License number: BCS 27677]

GOTS is the world's leading standard for the production and processing of textiles made from organically produced natural fibres
(ORGANIC / Organic Cotton).

The GOTS program defines, regulates and controls the entire value chain of organic production, from ecological extraction of raw fibers, through environmentally friendly and socially responsible manufacturing, to the distribution and labeling of the end products.

Environmental requirements play just as important a role as strict social criteria.

The most important key points are:

FIBER PRODUCTION:

+ Organic certification of the fibres based on recognised
international or national organic farming standards (EU organic
Regulation (EC Regulation No 834/2007), USDA NOP or
IFOAM Family of Standards)

+ A textile product with the GOTS label “organic” or
“kbA/kbT” must be at least 95% controlled organic
produced fibers contain

ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA:

+ All (chemical) additives must be biodegradable
+ Prohibition of:
+ Heavy metals
+ Formaldehyd
+ Genetically modified organisms
+ Chlorine bleach / Only oxygen based bleach allowed
+ Azo dyes
+ Only ecological printing methods allowed / Prohibition of:
+ Etching printing process with aromatic solvents
+ Pastisol printing processes that use phthalates and PVC
+ Environmental protection program to minimize waste & wastewater
+ Environmentally friendly packaging

SOCIAL CRITERIA:
+ No child labour
+ No forced labor
+ Occupational safety / Safe and hygienic working conditions
+ Minimum wage
+ Humane working hours
+ No discrimination

Direct link with further information:
www.global-standard.org

FAIRTRADE Cotton
[License number / FLOID: 37716]

Fairtrade is the world's best-known seal for fairly grown and traded products.

The Fairtrade standards, the set of rules includes social, ecological and economic criteria to ensure sustainable and fair development in the producer organizations in the manufacturing countries.

Our organic gym bags carry the FAIRTRADE COTTON seal. This program specifically ensures:

SOCIAL:
+ Safe and healthy working conditions
+ Prohibition of child labour
+ No forced labor
+ Valid employment contracts
+ Prohibition of discrimination

ECOLOGICAL:
+ Environmentally friendly cultivation / production methods
+ Protection of natural resources
+ Ban on dangerous pesticides
+ No genetically modified seeds

ECONOMIC:
+ Stable minimum prices / living wages
+ Proof of goods and money flow
+ Transparent trading relations
+ Pre-financing

Direct links with further information:
www.fairtrade-deutschland.de and
www.fairtrade-deutschland.de/baumwolle

OEKO-TEX® Standard 100

[Certificate number: 20.HIN.08975 HOHENSTEIN HTTI]

OEKO-TEX Standard 100 is a globally uniform and independent testing and certification system for textile raw, intermediate and finished products at all processing stages.

The focus is on increased and effective product safety. OEKO-TEX tests, certifies and guarantees that articles are harmless in terms of freedom from harmful substances and prohibited chemicals.

The focus is on:

+ Important legal regulations such as prohibited azo dyes, formaldehyde, pentachlorophenol, cadmium, nickel, etc.

+ Numerous chemicals that are hazardous to health, even if they are not yet regulated by law

+ Test criteria and limit values go well beyond national and international requirements

+ Extensive product controls and regular company audits also ensure that the industry is sustainably aware of the need for responsible handling of chemicals worldwide

Direct link with further information:
www.oeko-tex.com

BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative)

BSCI is an initiative to improve working conditions in global supply chains.

The rules, the “amfori BSCI Code of Conduct”, are based, among other things, on conventions of the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Human Rights Declaration.

Participants commit to implementing and adhering to the following 11 principles, which are aimed at ensuring the highest level of occupational safety:

+ Right to freedom of association & collective bargaining
+ Appropriate remuneration
+ Occupational safety / Healthy & safe working environment
+ Special protection for young workers
+ No forced labor
+ Ethical business practices (no corruption, extortion,
Embezzlement, bribery)
+ Equal opportunities / No discrimination
+ Reasonable working hours
+ No child labour
+ Documented employment relationships
+ Environmental protection / measures to prevent environmental damage

Direct link with further information:
www.amfori.org/bsci-in-brief and
www.amfori.org/bsci-the-approach

BUREAU VERITAS

Bureau Veritas (Certification) is a world leader in testing, inspection and certification.

The institute defines, controls, audits, certifies and currently holds more than 60 accreditations in the following areas:

+ Quality
+ Health
+ Security
+ Environment
+ Social responsibility

Direct link with further information:
www.bureauveritas.com

REACH

REACH is the new European chemicals law. It was published in 2006 as Regulation (EC) No. 1907/2006 of the European Union and replaces numerous legal regulations that existed up to that point. The regulation regulates the registration, evaluation, authorization and restriction of chemical substances.

The aim is to ensure a high level of protection for people and the environment in connection with chemicals.

REACH is based on the principle that manufacturers, importers and downstream users take responsibility for their chemicals. They must ensure that the chemicals they manufacture and place on the market are used safely.

The abbreviation “REACH” is derived from the English title of the regulation: Regulation concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals.

The REACH regulation is considered one of the strictest chemicals laws in the world.

Direct link with further information:
www.umweltbundesamt.at/wasistreach and
www.reach-info.de/

Bag SIZE:

Determine the size of your GOTS bag according to your taste or intended purpose.

Or choose from our standard sizes with the following dimensions:

+ Size “Small” / 20*25 cm
+ Size “Medium” / 38*42 cm
+ Size “Large” / 45*37 cm
+ Desired size / dimensions according to customer specifications

Further information and more sample images of different bag sizes can be found on our Promotional Bags Overview in section “Sizes”.

Bag COLOR:

The color of your organic promotional bag is one of the most distinctive recognition features of your promotional item. In addition to natural color / untreated, we can also color your organic shopping bag exactly according to Pantone. By choosing bright colors, you will achieve the highest attention in the target group and thus the greatest advertising effectiveness.

The coloring of your bag does not change its organic and GOTS classification. This remains the case because all of the dyeing process steps are organic and GOTS compliant and also certified.

Choose between the following colours for your organic promotional bag:

+ Natural color
+ Pantone / Desired color / According to customer specifications

As standard, we produce organic fabric bags made of organic cotton with a grammage of 140 g/m². This represents an ideal compromise between load-bearing capacity and tear resistance on the one hand and cost-efficient production on the other. Since every organic shopping bag we produce is custom-made for our customers, you can of course also determine the grammage of your promotional organic bags.

When manufacturing organic carrier bags from organic cotton, we place great value on optimal processing quality. Straight seams and precisely processed cross seams are just some of the quality features of our custom-made eco-friendly promotional bags.

Bag HANDLE:

You also decide the length of the handles. Depending on how you want to carry it, whether as a short hand strap or in a long version for carrying over the shoulder - everything is possible.

Choose between the handle length:

+ Handle length “Short” / Short hand straps / 30 cm
+ Handle length “Medium” / Normal carrying straps / 50 cm
+ Handle length “Long” / Long carrying straps, ideal for carrying over the shoulder / 70 cm
+ In desired length / according to customer specifications

Further information and more sample images of different handle lengths can be found on our Promotional Bags Overview in the section “Handle".

Bag finishing / printing:

Do you want to have organic fabric bags and GOTS jute bags printed with your own logo? Essential! The most important component in personalizing and customizing your organic cotton bag as an advertising medium, customer gift or merchandise is the printing. We print – GOTS certified (!) – your logo imprint, advertising motif, company logo or company name on your organic shopping bag.

Design your organic fabric bag as you wish. Have your GOTS cotton bag printed with an advertising slogan, advertising print or text of your choice.

A rare feature:
We can also print your organic cotton bag borderless. Your desired motif or design can extend to the edge of the bag, a safety distance is not necessary.

This gives you total freedom when it comes to individually branding your organic tote bag.

Important!
A note on the connection between ORGANIC / GOTS certification and subsequent printing / finishing:
A blank GOTS certified cotton bag will lose its GOTS status and organic standard if it is subsequently printed here in Europe by a non-GOTS certified printing company! Delivering such fabric bags with a GOTS label would not be permitted according to the strict GOTS specifications.

Stock items, fabric bags in stock that were previously labelled as ORGANIC and GOTS certified, lose this status if a non-GOTS certified company processes or alters these items in any way. For example, by subsequently printing your logo on them.

Any other information or claims on the market are simply false.

For organic bags manufactured by HAPPY BRANDS, all production steps, including the procurement of raw materials, the processing of the shopping bag itself, and ultimately its printing with your company logo or desired motif, take place exclusively in GOTS and FAIRTRADE certified production facilities.

In addition, we as a company are independently GOTS and FAIRTRADE certified and are therefore authorized to label bags with GOTS and FAIRTRADE labels and to sell them to you as our customers as FAIRTRADE and GOTS certified promotional bags.

Please check this fact when comparing existing offers with only supposedly identical performance.

Bag LABELS:

With an organic cotton bag, you are buying or selling a promotional product of the highest quality, a sustainable product that is guaranteed to have been manufactured in an environmentally friendly, ethically correct manner and in accordance with strict guidelines. Show off your quality!
By attaching labels to your bag, you can communicate your ecological and global social standing. This underlines your green brand image.

And you give your recipients a good feeling. If they know that the company gift they received from you was produced under fair working conditions and that the environment was protected in the process, then they will be more likely to wear and use this promotional gift, with a better feeling - and for longer. This positive mood will be transferred to the way they view your company and your image.

When applying organic certification labels, we offer:

+ Fabric label, attached outside, multi-coloured + printed on both sides
+ Paper label, sewn inside, multi-coloured + printed on both sides

Did you know?
Unlike other competitors on the market, not only our raw material suppliers in India are GOTS and FAIRTRADE certified, but we ourselves are too. HAPPY BRANDS has been and continues to be successfully audited and has been assigned its own license numbers (GOTS: BCS 27677 and FAIRTRADE: FloID 37716). This enables and authorizes us, as one of the few suppliers in Europe, to also provide you, our customers, with organic fabric bags and organic carrier bags with GOTS and optionally FAIRTRADE labels.

Bag SPECIAL REQUESTS:

We manufacture organic carrier bags completely according to your wishes. In addition to the general properties and options of a promotional bag, this can also be more specific. We are happy to implement your individual requirements.

Whether unusual size or shape, with an extra fastener (Velcro or metal snap fastener), an additional label with company logo or product slogan or anything else, as an organic fabric bag manufacturer we can respond to your needs and build and deliver your desired product for you.

Further information and more sample images of optional bag extras can be found on our Promotional Bags Overview under “Extras”.

As an alternative to these classic tote bags, we produce from the same Fairtrade and GOTS certified material, also Organic gym bag with logo, made of organic cotton.

Of course, as a bag manufacturer, we also offer many other variants of fabric bags or generally Promotional bags in other materials and designs. In addition to normal Fabric bags, you will also find FAIRTRADE cotton bags, Jute bags as well as PP WOVEN Shopper and PP NON WOVEN shopping bags.