Recognized standards & methods
The global evidence language behind every assessment — what each standard proves, the publisher or programme owner behind it, and which claims it supports. Recognized standards are widely portable: the same evidence is often reusable across buyers — though claim wording, sufficiency, thresholds, and local infrastructure stay market-specific.
Answer once, satisfy many (with local scope). A GRS certificate is a GRS certificate whether the questionnaire comes from a German retailer, a US buyer, or an Indian export customer — the underlying evidence travels, even though the claim wording and what counts as sufficient can differ by market. Evisentra maps your evidence to the standard it satisfies, so one document answers the same question everywhere.
20 recognized standards & methods. Some are paid documents (ISO, ASTM, national standards) — we link the official catalogue page; we do not resell them.
| Standard / method | What it proves | Body | Region | Supports | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISO 14021:2026 Environmental statements and programmes for products — self-declared environmental claims (Ed. 3, June 2026; replaces the withdrawn 2016 edition) | Requirements, documentation, and methodologies for self-declared environmental claims — including recycled content definitions and how terms like 'recyclable' must be qualified. Edition 3 published June 2026 (verified 2026-07-14). | ISO | Global | Recyclable / 100% recyclable, Recycled content (made from recycled material), Eco-friendly / green / environmentally friendly / sustainable, Less packaging / material reduction | catalogue · paid doc |
| ISO 14040 / 14044 Life cycle assessment — principles, framework & requirements | The framework for a defensible LCA: goal & scope, system boundary, functional unit, data quality, interpretation. | ISO | Global | Lower-carbon / reduced footprint / X% less CO2, Carbon neutral / net zero / climate neutral | catalogue · paid doc |
| ISO 14067 Carbon footprint of products | Quantification of a product's carbon footprint, consistent with LCA principles. | ISO | Global | Carbon neutral / net zero / climate neutral, Lower-carbon / reduced footprint / X% less CO2 | catalogue · paid doc |
| ISO 14026 Footprint communication | Principles for communicating footprint information, including comparative assertions on a like-for-like basis. | ISO | Global | Lower-carbon / reduced footprint / X% less CO2 | catalogue · paid doc |
| ISO 14064 Greenhouse gases — quantification & verification | Organization- and project-level GHG quantification and verification. | ISO | Global | Carbon neutral / net zero / climate neutral, Made with renewable / green / clean energy | catalogue · paid doc |
| GHG Protocol Product Standard Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard | Life-cycle GHG accounting for a product — widely used alongside ISO 14067. | WRI / WBCSD | Global | Carbon neutral / net zero / climate neutral, Lower-carbon / reduced footprint / X% less CO2 | catalogue |
| GRS Global Recycled Standard | Recycled-content percentage with full chain of custody, plus social/environmental criteria — third-party certified. Supports recycled-content evidence only; it does not prove recyclability or local recycling-facility access. | Textile Exchange | Global | Recycled content (made from recycled material) | catalogue |
| RCS Recycled Claim Standard | Recycled input verification with chain of custody (content-only, lighter than GRS). | Textile Exchange | Global | Recycled content (made from recycled material) | catalogue |
| ISCC PLUS ISCC PLUS certification | Chain-of-custody for recycled and bio-based feedstocks (segregation, controlled blending, or mass balance). | ISCC | Global | Recycled content (made from recycled material), Bio-based / plant-based material | catalogue |
| EN 13432 Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting | Industrial compostability of packaging — disintegration, biodegradation, ecotoxicity; the basis for most compostability certification. | CEN (European standard, globally referenced) | Global (EU-origin) | Compostable (home / industrial) | catalogue · paid doc |
| ASTM D6400 Labeling of plastics designed to be aerobically composted in municipal or industrial facilities | Industrial compostability of plastics (the US counterpart to EN 13432). | ASTM International | Global | Compostable (home / industrial) | catalogue · paid doc |
| AS 5810 Biodegradable plastics suitable for home composting | HOME compostability — a higher bar than industrial; required for any 'home compostable' claim. | Standards Australia | Global (AU-origin) | Compostable (home / industrial) | catalogue · paid doc |
| ASTM D6866 / EN 16640 Biobased carbon content by radiocarbon analysis | The measured biobased-carbon percentage of a material — the number behind any 'plant-based' or 'X% bio-based' claim. | ASTM International / CEN | Global | Bio-based / plant-based material | catalogue · paid doc |
| EN 17681-1 / TOF methods Textiles — PFAS analysis by LC-MS/MS (EN 17681-1:2025, supersedes the 2022 edition) and total-organic-fluorine methods | Fluorine / PFAS levels in a finished article — the test behind a 'PFAS-free' claim (definitions vary by law). | CEN / analytical labs | Global | PFAS-free / restricted substances | catalogue · paid doc |
| USDA BioPreferred USDA Certified Biobased Product label | A certified biobased-content percentage (via ASTM D6866) on a public label. | USDA | US (globally recognized label) | Bio-based / plant-based material | catalogue |
| FSC Forest Stewardship Council chain of custody | Third-party chain-of-custody traceability of wood, paper, and forest-based materials back to responsibly managed FSC-certified forests — the certification layer behind a deforestation-free / certified-sourcing claim. | Forest Stewardship Council | Global | Deforestation-free / zero-deforestation sourcing | catalogue |
| PEFC Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification — chain of custody | International chain-of-custody traceability of forest products to PEFC-endorsed sustainably managed forests; an optional add-on supports EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) due diligence. | PEFC | Global | Deforestation-free / zero-deforestation sourcing | catalogue |
| How2Recycle How2Recycle standardized recyclability label program (US/Canada) | A harmonized on-package recyclability label (Widely Recyclable / Check Locally / Store Drop-off / Not Yet Recyclable) assigned from the program's own assessment. | How2Recycle (SPC) | US / Canada | Recyclable / 100% recyclable | catalogue |
| APR Design Guide Association of Plastic Recyclers — APR Design Guide + Design Recognition programs | Design-for-recyclability guidance and testing protocols with formal recognition pathways (Preferred Design / Critical Guidance / Responsible Innovation). | APR | US | Recyclable / 100% recyclable | catalogue |
| RecyClass RecyClass recyclability assessment and certification for plastic packaging (EU) | Science-based recyclability assessment, design-for-recycling guidelines, and a formal recyclability certification scheme for plastic packaging. | RecyClass | EU | Recyclable / 100% recyclable | catalogue |
Global reporting regimes your buyers may cite
Context only. Evisentra helps organize the evidence these regimes call for. We do not assess or certify compliance against them, in any jurisdiction.
- EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) ((EU) 2023/1115) — Deforestation-free due diligence for commodities like wood, rubber, soy, palm, cocoa, coffee placed on or exported from the EU market. source
- EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) ((EU) 2023/956) — A carbon price on imports of carbon-intensive goods (steel, aluminium, cement, fertilizer, hydrogen); definitive phase from 2026 — importers need verified embedded-emissions evidence from suppliers. source
- EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) / Digital Product Passport ((EU) 2024/1781) — Framework for product ecodesign requirements and the Digital Product Passport — structured, machine-readable product evidence travelling with the product. source
- EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) ((EU) 2022/2464) — Company sustainability reporting that pushes value-chain evidence requests DOWN to suppliers of any size, in any region. source
- India — Business Responsibility & Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) (SEBI (LODR)) — SEBI-mandated ESG reporting for the largest listed companies (from FY 2022-23); BRSR Core pushes assured value-chain ESG data requests DOWN to a listed entity's top suppliers and customers (about 75% of purchases/sales by value). source
- India — Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for plastic packaging (CPCB / PWM Rules) — Producers, importers and brand-owners register on the CPCB EPR portal and meet recycling, recycled-content and end-of-life obligations for plastic packaging under the Plastic Waste Management Rules and EPR Guidelines — evidence buyers increasingly ask suppliers to show. source
- Australia — Mandatory climate-related financial disclosure (Corporations Act / AASB S2) — Phased from financial years beginning on/after 1 Jan 2025, large entities file annual sustainability reports with climate disclosures (AASB S2), administered by ASIC — a demand-side driver for supplier emissions and transition evidence. source
- Japan — Sustainability disclosure standards (SSBJ) (SSBJ / FSA roadmap) — The SSBJ standards (issued March 2025) incorporate ISSB IFRS S1/S2; under the FSA roadmap, application is being phased in for the largest Tokyo Prime-market companies from the fiscal year ending March 2027 — currently voluntary ahead of that. source
- Brazil — ISSB-based sustainability reporting (CVM) (CVM Res. 193 / 244) — CVM Resolution 193 (2023) established ISSB-based (IFRS S1/S2, via CBPS) sustainability reporting; Resolution 244 (2026) removed the mandatory phase, so the framework is currently voluntary for companies that choose to report. source
Recognized here means recognized by the market — not certified by Evisentra. Decision support, not legal advice or certification. See the rule index and the rubric.