EU textile fibre composition tolerance

Declared fibre percentages may differ from analysis by the tolerances Article 20 prints

Direct answer. In the consolidated text of Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011, CELEX 02011R1007-20180215 (EN, 15.02.2018), Article 20 is titled “Tolerances.” Article 20(3) says: “A manufacturing tolerance of 3 % shall be permitted between the stated fibre composition to be provided in accordance with Article 9 and the percentages obtained from analysis carried out in accordance with Article 19, in relation to the total weight of fibres shown on the label or marking.” Article 20(2) says the presence of extraneous fibres in the fibre composition to be provided in accordance with Article 9 does not need to be indicated if the percentage does not reach “2 % of the total weight of the textile product”, or “5 % of the total weight” in the case of textile products which have undergone a carding process, each provided this quantity is justified as being technically unavoidable in good manufacturing practice and is not added as a matter of routine. Article 20(2) is without prejudice to Article 8(3), which says extraneous fibres in the fleece-wool or virgin-wool products it refers to “shall not exceed 0,3 % by weight”. Those are the tolerance percentages that consolidation prints. This page does not round them. It is not legal advice.

FibreLedger Textile Labels (Shopify App Store · Write a review) validates every fibre against the official Annex I catalogue in EN, DE and FR, and flags trade names such as Lycra or Tencel that are not lawful fibre names. The listing does not say the app compares a laboratory analysis with the declared percentages. Fibre names are the Annex I page. When “100 %” and “other fibres” may be used is a different article.

Related: EU Food Info Guard — EU food information — allergens, origin, and nutrition before purchase.

Free check first: Textile fibre composition checker runs in your browser and sends nothing. Check fibre names against the EU Annex I list and that the blend adds up to 100%.

Checklist before you treat a percentage gap as allowed

• Read Article 20 on the 15 February 2018 consolidated text. The reference line is 02011R1007 — EN — 15.02.2018 — 004.001.
• Keep the space and the comma the article prints: 3 %, 2 %, 5 %, and 0,3 %.
• Article 20(3) is the gap between the stated Article 9 composition and analysis under Article 19. Article 20(2) is extraneous fibre that need not be indicated. They are not the same sentence.
• “100 %”, “pure”, “all”, and “other fibres” are Articles 7 and 9. That page is 100%, blends, and other fibres.
• The language of the composition line is the language of the market. Trade names are Lycra and Tencel.

The percentages Article 20 states

Article 20(1) says that, for the purposes of establishing the fibre composition of textile products, the tolerances laid down in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 shall apply.

• Article 20(2)(a): “2 % of the total weight of the textile product, provided this quantity is justified as being technically unavoidable in good manufacturing practice and is not added as a matter of routine”.
• Article 20(2)(b): “5 % of the total weight in the case of textile products which have undergone a carding process, provided this quantity is justified as being technically unavoidable in good manufacturing practice and is not added as a matter of routine.”
• Article 20(3): “A manufacturing tolerance of 3 % shall be permitted between the stated fibre composition to be provided in accordance with Article 9 and the percentages obtained from analysis carried out in accordance with Article 19, in relation to the total weight of fibres shown on the label or marking.” The same paragraph says that tolerance shall also apply to fibres which may be designated by the term ‘other fibres’ in accordance with Article 9, and to the percentage of wool referred to in point (b) of Article 8(2).

The sentence after Article 20(3) says the tolerances shall be calculated separately, and that the total weight to be taken into account in calculating the tolerance in that paragraph shall be that of the fibres of the finished product less the weight of any extraneous fibres found when applying the tolerance in paragraph 2. Article 20(4) says the cumulative application of the tolerances in paragraphs 2 and 3 shall be permitted only if any extraneous fibres found by analysis, when applying the tolerance in paragraph 2, prove to be of the same chemical type as one or more of the fibres shown on the label or marking. Article 20(5) says that, for particular textile products for which the manufacturing process requires tolerances higher than those laid down in paragraphs 2 and 3, the Commission may authorise higher tolerances. That paragraph does not print a further percentage.

Article 8(3), which Article 20(2) is without prejudice to, says: “The extraneous fibres in the products referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, including wool products which have undergone a carding process, shall not exceed 0,3 % by weight, shall be justified as being technically unavoidable in good manufacturing practice and shall not be added as a matter of routine.”

Article 7 is the “100 %” rule, not this manufacturing tolerance

Article 7(2) says a textile product containing no more than 2 % by weight of extraneous fibres may also be treated as exclusively composed of the same fibre, on the same technical-unavoidability conditions, and that a product which has undergone a carding process may be treated that way if it contains no more than 5 % by weight of extraneous fibres. That is when the label may say “100 %”, “pure” or “all”. Article 9(2) is when a fibre of up to 5 % of the total weight, or fibres which collectively account for up to 15 % of the total weight, may be designated “other fibres”. Those jobs are walked on 100%, blends, and other fibres. Annex I names, not trade names, are the fibre-label page.

What this page is not

• Not legal advice, a laboratory method, or a finding that a listed percentage is lawful.
• Not a rounded figure. The consolidation prints 3 %, 2 %, 5 %, and 0,3 %.
• Not the “100 %” and “other fibres” page. That URL is 100%, blends, and other fibres.
• Not a claim that FibreLedger measures the gap between a label and a test. The listing checks Annex I names and flags trade names.

Related pages

• Textile fibre composition checker — Annex I names and whether the blend adds up to 100%
• EU textile fibre labels need Annex I names
• 100%, blends, and other fibres
• Fibre composition in the language of the market
• Flag Lycra and Tencel
• Regulation (EU) No 1007/2011, consolidated to 15 February 2018
• FibreLedger Textile Labels — live App Store listing
• Shopify apps hub
• Tools

Not legal advice. Confirm Article 20, and Article 8(3) where Article 20(2) points to it, on the live consolidated text before you treat a gap between a declared percentage and an analysis as allowed. The app checks fibre names you enter. It does not perform the analysis in Article 19.