A total of 14 laboratories in different continents have been approved to carry out a test for the presence of genetically modified (GM) cotton along the organic cotton value chain.
In 2019, Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), the Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) and Textile Exchange partnered to develop the ISO IWA 32:2019, a protocol to create a common language among laboratories worldwide to test the potential presence of GM cotton along the organic cotton value chain. Following that project, the partners set out an initiative to bring clarity regarding the laboratories that perform testing against the ISO reference protocol and carry out GMO testing in cottonseed, leaf, fiber and chemically unprocessed fiber-derived materials.
The joint project has now reached a significant milestone, the partners said, with the approval of laboratories in China, Germany, India, the Netherlands and Portugal, which successfully passed the proficiency test for qualitative cotton screening according to ISO IWA 32:2019 organized in 2020.
The 14 laboratories are SGS-CSTC Standards Technical Services in China; Eurofins GeneScan, Hohenstein Laboratories, and Impetus GmbH & Co. Bioscience in Germany; Bureau Veritas India Testing Services, Envirocare Labs, FirstSource Laboratory Solutions (Analytical Services), Geo Chem Laboratories, National Collateral Management Services, NAWaL Analytical Laboratories, Reliable Analytical Laboratories, TESTTEX India Laboratories in India; TLR International Laboratory in the Netherlands; and SGS in Portugal.
