The European Flax™ certification is open to any company worldwide whose products are composed of European Flax™ certified flax/linen.
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified ?
Depending on your activity, application and certification process may differ slightly.
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified ? and be sure to read the European Flax™ Certification Process.
Overall, from the signature of the certification offer from Bureau Veritas until certification issuance, the process takes approximatively 17 weeks*, so the certification request should be anticipated early enough.
*based on a fluid process, reactivity on the part of each company and the absence of non-conformities.
Note: companies who have not yet received their certificate may buy and process certified materials, but they cannot sell certified materials until they receive their certificate
Membership:
European Companies applying for European Flax™ certification are required to become members of the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp. The scale of membership fees depends on member’s activity and the importance of their linen business. For more information, please contact the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp.
Certification & audit cost:
Cost is approximately €2,500 per year and per company, over 3 years.
Cost may vary depending on activity, multiple sites and subcontractors, and will be communicated by Bureau Veritas in their certification offer.
Composition test:
€300 per year, per company, for processors, starting 2nd year of certification.
Note: Composition tests are mandatory for processors involved in an activity of spinning, weaving, knitting, production of technical semi-products or any activity with a high risk of fibre blending, either internal or outsourced.
Trademark use is granted by Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp to certified companies and brands/retailers, free of charge, without any mark licensing fees, after signing the European Flax™ Trademark Terms of Use.
Products can be certified as European Flax™ only if:
As a reminder, a European Flax™ certified company can make both European Flax™ certified products and non-certified products. That is why you must check on your invoice and with your supplier that the quality you’re buying is actually European Flax™ certified.
Get more information on: How to verify that a product is European Fax™ certified?
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified ?
You can view the list of companies certified as European Flax™ by browsing our online directory.
No, that is not always the case.
A European Flax™ certified company can make both European Flax™ certified products and non-certified products, so a product bought from a certified supplier is not necessarily certified.
The criteria for product composition and for the transmission of the certification must also be met for this product to be European Flax™ certified.
That is why you must check on your invoice and with your supplier that the quality you’re buying is actually European Flax™ certified.
Get more information on: How to verify that a product is European Fax™ certified?
No, that is not the case.
A product can be European Flax™ certified only if each link in its value chain is European Flax™ certified, until the last business to business transaction.
For example when only the spinner or the weaver in the value chain of a product is European Flax™ certified, but not the other steps (garment manufacturer, traders etc.), this product cannot be European Flax™ certified.
You can start by verifying that your direct supplier is European Flax™ certified by browsing our online directory of certified companies and that the product you are purchasing is certified as well.
Get more information on: How to verify that a product is European Fax™ certified?
If the yarn or the fabric is certified, it means the requirements of the European Flax™ Standard were respected until the spinning step or the weaving step.
But the final product made from this certified European Flax™ yarn or fabric can only be certified if all the steps following spinning or weaving respected the same requirements too, that is to say:
Get more information on: How to verify that a product is European Fax™ certified?
No. It means that the flax fibre used in European Flax™ certified semi-finished products and finished products has been grown and scutched in Western Europe (France, Belgium, The Netherlands) and that traceability has been ensured at each following transformation and trading steps until the last business-to-business transaction.
Those steps can be performed in or outside of Europe, the European Flax™ certification being open to any company worldwide whose products are composed of certified flax/linen. See European Flax™ Traceability Chain
European Flax™ is the guarantee of traceability for premium quality flax fibres grown in Western Europe for all end uses. It is open to any company worldwide whose products are composed of certified flax/linen.
A flax fibre grown through farming that is respectful of the environment, under social and ethical criteria laid down by the International Labour Organization.
More information on the added values of the European Flax™ fibre
You can also find more information on the flax-linen proven properties and the European Flax ™ scutched long fibre LCA.
Only certified European Flax™ products can be labelled as such, so the first thing is to make sure that your direct supplier is certified and that your product is indeed certified.
Get more details on: How to verify that a product is European Fax™ certified?
Brands & retailers need to verify if they need to become certified before being able to claim the European Flax™ certification for their products. This will depend on their supply chain.
Find out more on: How to become European Flax™ certified ?
Regarding the use of the logo on certified finished products:
As a reminder, trademark use is granted by Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp to certified companies and brands/retailers, free of charge, without any mark licensing fees.
The guarantee of traceability of European Flax™ products/materials from one certified company to another is ensured through sales invoices, which must feature:
European Flax™ traceability does not require transaction certificates.
Also, each certified company is audited yearly by an independent certifying body to ensure it complies with the European Flax™ requirements and all traceability processes are fully implemented.
What the 2 certifications have in common:
The differences between the 2 certifications:
Get more information on: How to verify that a product is Masters of Linen™
European Flax™ and Masters of Linen™ are two different certifications.
European Flax™ certified companies are not automatically Masters of Linen™ certified, and vice versa.
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified?
Get more information on: How to become Masters of Linen™ certified?
European Flax™ and Masters of Linen™ are two different certifications.
Masters of Linen™ certified companies are not automatically European Flax™ certified, and vice versa.
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified?
Get more information on: How to become Masters of Linen™ certified?
Masters of Linen™ certified products can only be made by certified Masters of Linen™ companies.
Therefore, if a company is only certified as European Flax™, its products can only be labelled as European Flax™. They cannot be labelled as Masters of Linen™ certified.
If a company is Masters of linen™ certified (spinners, weavers, circular knitters), their Masters of Linen™ yarns and fabrics are automatically certified European Flax™ as well.
In fact, the European Flax™ fibre is the only flax raw material used by Masters of Linen™ spinners. As a consequence, it is at the base of Masters of Linen™ certified products.
Please note that this does not allow Masters of Linen™ certified companies to claim that they are European Flax™ certified.
In order to be European Flax™ certified and receive a European Flax™ certificate, they must undergo the European Flax™ certification process.
Get more details on: How to become European Flax™ certified?
To become Masters of Linen™ certified, a company must:
For full requirements please contact us
Editors and brands may choose to become certified as well, or to receive the certification for their certified products from their supplier.
Get more information about: How to label my Masters of Linen™ products
The process to become Masters of Linen™ certified can be summarized as follow:
Get more details about: How to become Masters of Linen™ certified?
Once the Contract and Company Profile are validated and all required elements are provided, the Masters of Linen Validation Committee can rule on each application within a few weeks.
Membership:
Companies applying for Masters of Linen™ certification are required to become members of Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp. The scale of membership fees depends on member’s activity and the importance of their linen business.
For more information, please contact us
Audit costs:
Indicative yearly cost for certification bodies Centrocot and Centexbel is approximately €400/year + travel expenses.
Trademark use is granted by Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp to certified companies and brands/retailers*, free of charge, without any mark licensing fees.
*for brands and retailers: please contact us for full details.
Products can be certified as Masters of Linen™ only if they respect the following criteria:
As a reminder, a Masters of Linen™ certified company can make both Masters of Linen™ certified products and non-certified products. That is why you must check on your invoice and with your supplier that the quality you’re buying is actually Masters of Linen™ certified.
Get more info about: How to verify that a product is Masters of Linen™
View the list of companies certified as Masters of Linen™ by browsing our directory.
No, that is not always the case.
A Masters of Linen™ certified company can make both Masters of Linen™ certified products and non-certified products, so a product bought from a certified supplier is not necessarily certified.
The criteria for product composition and traceability must also be met for this product to be Masters of Linen™ certified.
Get more info about: How to verify that a product is Masters of Linen™
Get more details on: How to become Masters of Linen™ certified?
Only certified Masters of Linen™ products can be labelled as such, so the first thing is to make sure your product is indeed certified.
All types of communication, labelling, logo use and claims around the Masters of Linen™ certification must comply with the Masters of Linen™ Guidelines for logo use and be validated by the Alliance.
The use of the Trademark is granted free of charge by the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp, without any licensing fees, after completing and signing the Masters of Linen™ contract and Company Profile.
Regarding the use of the logo on certified finished products:
Brands and Retailers may also choose to become certified themselves, and use the Masters of Linen™ Trademark according to the process for certified companies above.
Get more details on: How to become Masters of Linen™ certified?
The guarantee of traceability of Masters of Linen™ products/materials is ensured through sales invoices (or any other document from the certified company such as order confirmation, or a separate document), which must feature
- The supplier’s certificate number
- The composition of each certified product
- The claim “Masters of Linen™ certified” for each certified product
Brands and retailers receive the above traceability and certification guarantees of their materials directly from:
- Their certified weavers or circular knitters
OR
- Their certified spinners (in case of flatbed knitwear)
Masters of Linen™ traceability does not require transaction certificates.
Also, each certified company is audited yearly by an independent certifying body to ensure it complies with the Masters of Linen™ requirements and all traceability processes are fully implemented.
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