At its core is the digitization of Transaction Certificates, bringing physical material movements and certification data together on a single solution and replacing fragmented, paper-based processes.

Organic cotton continues to gain strategic importance in the global textile and apparel industry as brands, regulators and consumers increasingly demand credible sustainability claims and verified supply chains. This trend is reflected in the rapid expansion of the OEKO-TEX® ORGANIC COTTON certification, which recorded a 381% year-over-year growth by 31 December 2025.

As volumes grow, so does the need for credible, fraud-resistant certification systems. Against this backdrop, OEKO-TEX® chose TextileGenesis to take a future-facing approach to organic cotton certification, tackling one of the industry’s most pressing challenges: fraud prevention through the digitization of Transaction Certificates in organic cotton supply chains.

From fiber to data: Building a secure digital chain of custody

A key component is TextileGenesis’ token-based fibercoinTM technology, which links each physical shipment of organic cotton to a unique digital token within a closed-loop system. This approach enables transparent, tamper-resistant traceability from fiber to finished product, while significantly reducing administrative effort for ginners, spinners, manufacturers and brands.

“OEKO-TEX® plays an important role in setting trusted standards for organic cotton across the textile industry, and we’re pleased to collaborate with the OEKO-TEX® Organic Cotton Standard on this initiative.” says Amit Gautam, CEO of TextileGenesis. “By using TextileGenesis’ pioneering FibercoinTM technology, we are creating a digital chain of custody for OEKO-TEX® certified organic cotton and eliminating pdf/paper-based Transaction certificates. This collaboration helps ensure that organic cotton claims are easier to manage and verifiable at scale.”

The initiative builds on OEKO-TEX®’s established in-house GMO testing, conducted exclusively within its 17 international testing institutes. Both raw fiber and raw yarn are tested, ensuring that organic standards are verified at the very beginning of the supply chain and consistently upheld throughout. From a strategic perspective, the cooperation marks an important milestone in OEKO-TEX®’s broader digital roadmap. According to OEKO-TEX® CEO, Dr. Alfred J. Beerli, the collaboration is a natural next step: “Working with TextileGenesis is a key part of how we are moving our certification system into the digital future. Secure, transparent and data-driven processes strengthen the integrity of OEKO-TEX® while making certification more efficient and scalable – especially for organic cotton certified by us.”

The digitization of Transaction Certificates for OEKO-TEX® ORGANIC COTTON is intentionally designed as a starting point. “We see this as a pilot with much wider potential,”Dr. Beerli explains. “Once established, this approach can be extended step by step to other OEKO-TEX® certifications and product groups.”

Laying the groundwork for the next phase of certification

This next phase in the collaboration builds on the success of a traceability pilot launched in 2025 involving eleven supply chain actors. It enabled OEKO-TEX® to trace selective organic cotton supply chains across India and Bangladesh, involving ginning, spinning mills, fabric mills and certification bodies. Feedback from suppliers demonstrated strong acceptance of the digital approach, highlighting high usability, effective training and comprehensive support. Companies such as KKP Spinning Mills Pvt. Ltd., Milan Ginning Pressing Limited and Atlas Export Enterprises agreed that the collaboration strengthened compliance and trust across the certified supply chain.

OEKO-TEX® and TextileGenesis will now continue to jointly develop the platform, with the aim of scaling digital Transaction Certificates across additional organic cotton supply chains.

Looking ahead, digital platforms will play a central role in safeguarding trust in textile certifications. “Real-time transparency and interoperability will be essential going forward,” predicts Dr. Beerli. “Our ambition is not only to keep pace with industry developments, but to actively help shape future-ready certification standards.”