Levi Strauss & Co. Expands Chemical Screening in its Supply Chain

(Photo Credit: Levi Strauss & Co.)

by | Nov 22, 2019

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Levi Strauss & Co. Expands Chemical Screening in its Supply Chain

(Photo Credit: Levi Strauss & Co.)

Levi Strauss & Co. formed a partnership with international testing services provider Hohenstein to use Oeko-Tex Eco Passport chemical product certification in the apparel-maker’s supply chain.

LS&Co. said that Eco Passport complements an open-source program that the company had previously developed called Screened Chemistry. As LS&Co. explains, Screened Chemistry scrutinizes chemical formulations to prevent potentially hazardous compounds from entering the apparel supply chain, and identifies safer alternatives.

“Eco Passport gives us enhanced abilities to validate the disclosures we get from chemical suppliers through analytical testing in the lab and onsite facility audits,” said Linda Gallegos, Levi Strauss & Co. senior designer for product innovation. “It means greater transparency, additional levels of testing and certification, and a greater ability to say that we are employing safer chemistry throughout our supply chain.”

Through Eco Passport, Levi Strauss & Co. gains a much better picture of whether suppliers are employing chemical manufacturing best practices, Gallegos added.

The company also noted that using the Screened Chemistry program and Eco Passport together aligns with standards agreed upon by the industry-led Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Roadmap to Zero initiative.

This new partnership with Hohenstein also helps LS&Co. advance its own chemicals management program to create a template that others can use, according to the apparel company.

“The result is a program that goes beyond a risk management approach and provides a roadmap for companies to eliminate and prevent the introduction of chemical hazards in the supply chain,” LS&Co. said.

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