Do you know the Cradle-to-Cradle Certification?

Do you know the Cradle-to-Cradle Certification?

The Cradle-to-Cradle Certification (from the cradle to the cradle) is a system that recognizes and encourages innovation in sustainable products through a multi-criteria methodology in which the effects on the health of the material, the degree of reuse of materials, the use of renewable energies during its manufacture, water management and the behavior of the companies that produce it with respect to dealing with their employees and the environment.

Products are now not only judged on their aesthetics or functionality, but also on their effect on the environment, human health, and their reuse in the circular economy.

Cradle to Cradle certification is awarded at five levels: Basic, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, with the expectation that an applicant will be able to optimize their product over time.

For the evaluation of the products, the following aspects are analyzed:

Material health

Ensure that all chemical components of products are defined as positive. This quality is judged against a set of environmental and human health criteria, and any component that is classified as high risk or not classifiable should be removed from the process and replaced.

Reuse of materials

It must be possible to identify the material flows that can be reused when the product is recovered after being used by the user or the customer. The materials are reused as raw materials in the manufacturing process (Technosphere) or as biological nutrients (biosphere).

Use of renewable energy

One of the three main principles of Cradle to Cradle (the other two are waste equals food and encourage diversity as in nature) is to use current solar energy, which means that energy use must be, to the greatest extent possible, renewable. In this way, Cradle to Cradle companies ensure that most of their activities and products have a positive impact on the environment and human health.

Water management

Companies that follow this path must demonstrate that they are using water resources in a responsible and eco-efficient way, and that discharges from factories into local rivers are as clean as possible.

Social responsibility

Companies must demonstrate that they comply with the strictest principles of responsibility in relation to their personnel, and they must strive to ensure that companies in their supply chain are not violating these principles.

The Cradle-to-Cradle Product Registry shows which products hold each level of certification and how they have scored for their level. One more step towards the transparency of manufacturers and products with the aim that consumers know more details about the sustainability of the different items.