INSIGHTS & UPDATES
News and insights about GRS, RCS, recycled materials and chain of custody.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
Mass Balance and Physical BCI Cotton are two different ways of sourcing and managing BCI Cotton. Mass Balance relies on volume accounting and BCCUs, while Physical BCI Cotton uses physical Chain of Custody models to support traceability. This guide explains the differences in traceability, BCI Platform transactions, certification and sourcing requirements.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
The BCI Platform is the Better Cotton Initiative's online system for recording and tracking BCI Cotton transactions through the supply chain. It supports both Mass Balance and Physical BCI Cotton. This guide explains who needs the BCI Platform, how to register, 2026 access fees, training requirements and the differences between BCI Platform access, membership and Chain of Custody certification.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
BCI Chain of Custody Standard v1.2 defines how BCI Cotton is controlled, documented and transferred through the supply chain. The current version, effective from 6 January 2026, includes four models: Mass Balance, Controlled Blending, Segregation – Multi-Country and Segregation – Single Country. This article summarizes the key requirements textile companies should understand when implementing BCI CoC and preparing for certification.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
Many manufacturers invest in recycled materials to meet customer expectations and sustainability goals. However, purchasing certified recycled materials alone does not automatically prove that the finished products genuinely contain those materials. The real challenge lies in maintaining traceability throughout the entire production process. How can a manufacturer demonstrate that recycled materials received from suppliers are the same materials incorporated into the final product? How can customers be confident that recycled materials have not been mixed with virgin materials without proper control? The answer lies in a robust Chain of Custody (CoC) system.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
More and more companies are promoting products made with recycled materials. However, behind every sustainability claim lies one critical question that international brands and consumers increasingly ask: How much recycled material does this product actually contain? This question refers to Recycled Content—the percentage of recycled material incorporated into a finished product. Although the term appears frequently in international standards such as the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) and the Recycled Claim Standard (RCS), many manufacturers still confuse Recycled Materials with Recycled Content. While the two concepts are closely related, they represent different aspects of sustainable manufacturing. Understanding the distinction is essential for businesses seeking to make accurate product claims, comply with customer requirements, and build trust in today's increasingly transparent supply chains.
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Recycling & Sustainable Materials
For many years, when people thought about recycling, they typically associated it with collecting plastic bottles, used paper, aluminum cans, or other waste materials for disposal and reprocessing. While this perception is not incorrect, it no longer reflects the full significance of recycling in today's global economy. As sustainability and the Circular Economy become central business priorities, recycling has evolved far beyond a waste management practice. For manufacturers—particularly those operating in the textile, packaging, plastics, paper, furniture, and consumer goods industries—recycled materials have become a strategic business resource rather than simply an environmental initiative.
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