First German tannery secures Oeko-Tex STeP certification
German leather manufacturer Heinen has become the first tanner in the country to secure STeP certification from standards body Oeko-Tex.
STeP originally stood for ‘Sustainable Textile Production’. Oeko-Tex introduced this certification programme in 2013 to replace its old Standard 1000. It said at the time that its aim was to recognise companies that run environmentally friendly and socially responsible supply chains. It began applying STeP to leather in 2019.
Heinen has long embodied the principles that underpin STeP. Terracare, the brand name that Heinen applies to all its finished leather, is well known among sustainability-focused high-end brands.
According to Heinen, the name Terracare defines its production standards: environmentally-friendly, resource-efficient and socially compatible, using raw materials from Germany.
Image credit: Hanwag/Heinen/Terracare
