Understanding Textile Exchange’s new Materials Matter Standard

In July 2025, Textile Exchange announced a major evolution in the way sustainability standards are structured across the organization. During its annual conference, the non‑profit introduced the Materials Matter Standard (MMS), a new unified framework designed to bring its existing material standards together under a single system.

The official criteria for the Materials Matter Standard were published later in December 2025. MMS aims to define what “best practice” looks like in raw material production, whether materials come from animal fibers or recycled inputs.

This article provides a practical overview of what the Materials Matter Standard is, how it relates to existing Textile Exchange standards such as GRS, what it means for brands and suppliers, and how the transition is expected to unfold.

The Materials Matter Standard: What Is It?

The Materials Matter Standard is Textile Exchange’s new umbrella standard for responsible material production. It is a voluntary sustainability standard for Tier 4 suppliers, such as farms, recycling facilities, and first processors, and aims to harmonize criteria across materials while replacing the current standards.

In practical terms, the Materials Matter Standard brings together the principles behind existing Textile Exchange standards into a shared structure focused on raw material production and first processing. This includes recycled fibers, previously covered by the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) and the Recycled Content Standard (RCS), as well as responsible animal fibers, formerly under the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS), Responsible Down Standard (RDS), Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS), and Responsible Alpaca Standard (RAS).

Rather than maintaining separate standards for different fiber types, the Materials Matter Standard establishes a unified framework that applies consistently across materials and sourcing pathways. Its purpose is to ensure that preferred and responsible materials are produced following consistent environmental, social, and management practices, whether they originate from recycling processes or responsible animal farming.

Materials Matter Standard Core Criteria Explained

The Materials Matter Standard sets out baseline and enhanced criteria that apply at the earliest stages of the textile value chain, often referred to as Tier 4 (raw material production, including recycling).

MMS is built around seven unified principles:

• Organizational management
• Human rights and livelihoods (including clearer expectations for recycler documentation, such as waste picker records)
• Land use and biodiversity
• Animal welfare
• Processing facility requirements (chemicals, water, waste, and energy with monthly tracking)
• Chain of custody (Tier 4 segregation and reconciliation)
• Group certification
• Traceability requirements for downstream tiers (Tiers 3–0) are covered by the Content Claim Standard (CCS).

For recycled materials in particular, the Materials Matter Standard strengthens expectations around textile‑to‑textile recycling, transparency of waste origin, and process controls, areas that previously relied more heavily on individual standard interpretation.

The intent is not only to verify claims but to drive continuous improvement and create greater alignment across certified material supply chains.

MMS vs GRS

One of the most common questions is how the Materials Matter Standard relates to the Global Recycled Standard (GRS).

Under Textile Exchange’s new system, GRS will be phased out. Its core strengths, such as traceability, chemical, social and environmental safeguards, and verification of recycled inputs, are being integrated into the Materials Matter Standard at Tier 4. Downstream traceability will be managed through the Content Claim Standard (CCS).

Rather than a direct replacement, this shift represents an evolution: MMS consolidates and elevates the principles that previously sat within GRS while placing them inside a unified Tier 4 framework for all materials. The goal is to simplify alignment across material standards over time and reduce fragmentation for certified supply chains.

Materials Matter Standard’s impact on brands

For brands, retailers, and suppliers, the Materials Matter Standard represents a step toward greater clarity and consistency in sustainable fiber sourcing.

As sustainability requirements expand, many organizations face overlapping certifications, audits, and reporting frameworks. MMS is designed to reduce fragmentation by establishing a common reference point for what qualifies as responsible material production.

Potential impacts include:

• Clearer definitions of better and preferred materials

• More consistent expectations across material types

• Improved material traceability and credibility of sustainability claims

• Better alignment with emerging regulatory and reporting requirements

For non-sustainability professionals, MMS helps translate sustainability into operational criteria that can be applied within sourcing, procurement, and supplier management decisions.

The Materials Matter Standard timeline: when does it become effective?

Rather than an immediate switch, Textile Exchange has signaled a phased transition. Existing certifications and standards remain valid while brands, suppliers, and certification bodies prepare for integration.

Audits and certifications to the Materials Matter Standard will become effective and will begin voluntarily from December 31, 2026. Legacy standards (GRS, RCS, RWS, RDS, RMS, RAS) remain valid during this period.

From December 31, 2027, The Materials Matter Standard becomes mandatory, replacing previous standards. This staged approach is intended to give the industry time to adapt without disrupting existing certified supply chains.

Recover’s point of view

From Recover’s perspective, the Materials Matter Standard is a meaningful evolution in how responsible materials are defined and verified.

We welcome the move toward enhanced verification and stricter criteria, particularly for recycled materials, as well as stronger alignment with regulatory requirements that support more credible sustainability reporting. We also see clear value in the introduction of defined requirements for textile waste suppliers, an area where Recover™ has already been working voluntarily. Together, these elements reinforce the practices that are essential for scaling circular materials responsibly.

We believe the industry will need alignment with industrial realities, ensuring that any additional testing or waste tracking requirements remain viable at scale. At the same time, it will be essential to maintain full supply chain continuity, with environmental and social expectations extending beyond raw material production to the rest of the value chain.‑tracking requirements remain viable at scale.

However, greater clarity will be needed beyond Tier 4, particularly around how downstream tiers such as spinning, weaving, and processing will integrate into the Materials Matter Standard framework, how full‑chain environmental impacts will be assessed once MMS is implemented, and how the standard will interact with future updates to Content Claim Standard. As the standard matures, we believe continued dialogue between standard setters and industry practitioners will be essential.

The Materials Matter Standard marks a significant step in the evolution of Textile Exchange standards. By unifying some frameworks under a single structure, MMS aims to make responsible material sourcing clearer, more consistent, and more credible for the global textile industry.

As members of the Textile Exchange Governance Board through Alfredo Ferre, and the Recycling Advisory Group through our Sustainability team, we remain actively engaged in reviewing proposals, addressing questions, and representing the voice of Tier 4 recyclers across MMS, CCS, and broader assurance frameworks.