Nonylphenol ethoxylates in textiles

The findings of the investigations launched by Greenpeace in their Dirty Laundry reports, as part of the current Detox campaign, demonstrate the urgent need to eliminate the use of hazardous chemical inputs in the manufacturing of textiles such as Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs), according to GOTS. The Global Organic Textile Standard (picture) and their quality assurance system ensure that all prohibited substances are excluded from the GOTS certified supply chain through a combination of complementary control measures.

NPEs are mostly used as surfactants and wetting agents but also as emulsifiers, dispersants and finishers in formulations of chemical inputs in the textile industry. Once released to surface water, NPEs degrade to nonylphenol (NP). NP is known to be a persistent, toxic and bioaccumulative substance, able to act as a hormone disruptor. Even though legal restrictions are in place for the use of NPEs in various regions and in the EU that products containing more than 0.1 % of either NPE or NP are prohibited since 2005, the Greenpeace reports indicate that NPE containing textile auxiliaries are still widely used in manufacturing countries such as China, Vietnam and Turkey. Textiles produced using these inputs are then sold throughout the EU and other regions where their use is banned. More information is available here: GOTS