By Bed Threads Bedding 15.08.2025

What Does It Mean To Be GOTS Certified

GOTS certification is a sign of high-quality organic cotton sheets, but what exactly does it mean?

If you’ve recently shopped for high-quality organic cotton sheets, chances are you’ve come across the phrase GOTS certified.

GOTS (short for the Global Organic Textile Standard) is one of the most trusted certifications out there when it comes to organic fabric, ethical manufacturing, and low-impact production.

But like most product certifications, understanding it can seem a little complicated at first.

Whether you’re on the lookout for sustainable, organic bedding or just curious, here’s everything you need to know about what GOTS certification means and why it’s worth looking for

GOTS-certified meaning

GOTS stands for the Global Organic Textile Standard. It’s widely regarded as the leading certification standard for organic fabrics worldwide. The standard covers important textile industry issues like environmental impact, the use of chemicals, product traceability, wages, labour standards and more.

Unlike vague, catch-all terms like ‘environmentally friendly’ or ‘sustainable’, GOTS certification means that a product’s value chain has been rigorously vetted and evaluated according to strict criteria.

GOTS certification relies on accredited, independent third-party organisations to audit textile producers. These organisations are based in regions across the world, including places where textile materials are grown and processed.

That way, you know GOTS certified cotton bed sheets are genuinely organic, free from harmful trace chemicals, as well as better for people and the planet.

What is GOTS certification?

GOTS certification is a comprehensive system that covers the entire lifecycle of a textile product.

It applies to any product made with at least 70% certified organic fibres, and to get the label, growers and manufacturers must meet strict environmental and social criteria at every stage of production.

Here’s what GOTS certification includes:

Farming: Cotton must be grown without toxic pesticides, synthetic fertilisers or GMOs.
Processing: The use of harmful chemicals like formaldehyde and heavy metals is strictly prohibited for GOTS-certified products.
Quality standards: GOTS-certified products must meet quality-control standards, including colourfastness, shrinkage, durability and more.
Labour standards: Safe working conditions, fair wages and checks against child labour are all required for GOTS certification.

Is all organic cotton GOTS certified?

Not all cotton textile products labelled ‘organic’ are GOTS certified. This matters because the organic label often means slightly different things in different parts of the world.

With globalised value chains being the norm, bedding products labelled as organic may be grown in one region, woven into fabric, and finished in another - with different standards for what counts as organic production in each place. The result can be dubious claims of organic material and opaque supply chains.

GOTS certification, on the other hand, applies the same standards to all textile products, no matter where they’re produced. This makes GOTS certification much more stringent and transparent than generic organic labelling.

On top of the greater supply chain transparency, GOTS certification also carries strict social impact standards that typical organic labels don’t. These include fair pay, safe working conditions and regular site audits by third-party certifiers to ensure that all GOTS products are being manufactured responsibly and sustainably.

Does GOTS certification mean no chemicals?

GOTS certification prohibits the use of a range of harmful chemicals in the manufacture of certified textiles. This includes prohibiting toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilisers in the growing process, heavy metal compounds, formaldehyde and other toxic materials in manufacturing, as well as finishing chemicals like phthalates.

GOTS-certified products can still contain some chemicals, but only those that are individually approved based on strict safety and environmental criteria. That includes low-impact dyes and biodegradable treatment products that are non-toxic to both humans and the environment.

Here’s a quick rundown of common harmful chemicals that are prohibited under GOTS certification:

Toxic pesticides
Synthetic fertilisers
Formaldehyde
Chlorine bleach
Azo dyes
Heavy metals

By avoiding these harmful chemicals, GOTS-certified bedding products are better for the environment and all the people who make them.

What’s more, unlike conventional cotton bedding, GOTS-certified products don’t contain trace amounts of these chemicals, which means they’re less likely to trigger allergies, safer for sensitive skin and healthier for your bedroom environment.

What's better between GOTS and OEKO-TEX?

GOTS and OEKO-TEX are different certification standards for textiles that apply to products at different stages of their creation.

GOTS certification applies from growing to spinning to the manufacture of textile products. On the other hand, the OEKO-TEX Standard 100 guarantees that finished products have been rigorously tested and are free from harmful chemicals.

Both of these certification standards are rigorous and recognised around the world, though GOTS certification is the more comprehensive of the two, and spans the entire textile value chain.

Thankfully, Bed Threads bedding is both GOTS certified to the highest standard, 100% organic cotton, and is OEKO-TEX certified.

This means that the entire bedding collection is not only free from harmful chemicals by the time it ends up on your bed, but that the entire production process is safer for farmers, textile workers and the environment.

How to check if your sheets are GOTS certified?

While plenty of bedding products claim to be organic, GOTS certification is the highest standard for organic textiles across the world.

Needless to say, bedding brands that offer GOTS-certified products are proud to show it. Keep an eye out for the GOTS logo, either on the product website or the care label. You can also check in with brands to confirm that their products are GOTS certified.

Bed Threads products are 100% organic cotton and proudly GOTS certified to the highest standard.