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The international association OEKO-TEX has granted Riopele the exceptional top level STeP certification – Sustainable Textile Production, which states to the company’s permanent search for production processes that respect the environment, as well as safe, healthy and socially acceptable working conditions.
The company led by José Alexandre Oliveira, “was graded maximum level, joining a strict group of international textile companies that reached level 3 classification (exemplary implementation of good practices). When compared to other companies certified within the same scope, the global average classification is level 2 (good implementation)”.
To obtain this certification, an in-person auditing was undertaken by CITEVE, the entity accredited by OEKO-TEX in Portugal, which evaluated Riopele in six categories: Management of Chemicals, Environmental Performance, Environmental Management, Social Responsibility, Quality Control and Health and Safety Management, “producing an all-encompassing and reliable analysis of the degree of sustainable management present in Riopele’s production process”.
When it comes to the report of the audit, OEKO-TEX, in charge of the STeP certification, issued a series of compromise actions that Riopele should implement, while also recommending improvements that should be analysed by the company and, if possible, implemented in order to continue progress.