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Commitment to transparency:
The EDFA develops a documentation system on the origin of down and feathers -
more than 90 manufacturers of bedfeathers and bedding articles resolve on a voluntary code of conduct
On the occasion of this year´s general meeting, the members of the association of the European bedfeather and bedding industries have unanimously pledged themselves again to animal welfare and the appropriate gathering of feathers according to valid animal welfare acts and regulations by means of a code of conduct they have established for themselves and the development of a traceability system which considerably goes beyond the animal welfare acts that are currently applied in the European Union. The companies obligate themselves to comply in future with the following code of conduct to
accompany the legislation on husbandry and the gathering of feathers:
- The members must not gather and obtain any down and feathers sourcing from liveplucking.
- The companies include a corresponding declaration in their sales contracts and General Terms and Conditions.
- The origin of the down and feathers are entered in detail in a documentation system, i. e. the EDFA standard on traceability.
- Bedding articles produced and marketed in these circumstances may be labelled accordingly to the benefit of the consumer.
In cooperation with auditing experts, various tasks groups have developed the EDFA standard on traceability according to which it is possible to establish by means of a documentation system the determination of origin of the filling materials which consist of down and feathers sourcing from the production of poultry meat. This applies to all consignments deriving from the EU member states, the countries belonging to the Council of Europe and third countries. Hence, the EDFA standard on traceability covers the gathering of feathers all over the world.
In the future, suppliers must certify that their merchandise derives from slaughtered animals or the feathers and down were gathered during the moulting season in a manner permitted by law. Independent experts or organisations will henceforth carry out audits on a regular basis to control the accuracy of the information.
The association that has encouraged authorities and commissions since its establishment in 1980 to advocate for uniform European legislation for the husbandry of geese and ducks according to the rules and conservative gathering of down and feathers, wants to set standards by means of its traceability system. The aim is to convince consumers and the processing industry that the filling material used for finished articles comes from species-appropriate sources. The EDFA standard on traceability will become effective after January 1, 2011 and will be available for use to the public and also to non-members of the EDFA as orientation aid.
Responsible for the content according to German press law: EDFA (association of the European bedfeather and bedding industry, registered association, Thomas-Mann-Str. 9a, 55122 Mainz, represented by Dr. Juliane Hedderich, economist, managing director
Quelle
European Down and Feather Association
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