RDS International Working Group Call

October 25, 2017

Agenda

  1. Introductions and Housekeeping
  2. Updates on Responsible Down Standard
  3. Additional stakeholder outreach
  4. Participating Member – charter and NDA
  5. Terms of Reference
  6. Work Plan & Task Force Sign-ups
  7. Feedback collection

Participating Member – charter and NDA

  • Calls going forward will be once a month or every six weeks
  • We will be looking at other times for people in the Pacific time zone to join the call at a reasonable time.
  • We will be asking Participating Members to sign a NDA and a Charter.
  • We want to respect those wanting to remain anonymous
  • These documents will be going out later for everyone to sign
  • When you sign you will be signing on the behalf of your company with Textile Exchange
  • Once our group of Participating Members is set, we will begin the voting process on the Terms of Reference

Terms of Reference

  • This document will guide the revision process for us.
  • We want to look at each area and make sure the needs are being met within the Standard. The document includes goal, scope, needs justification, and risk assessment.
  • We will also look at existing standards in this space and ensure that the RDS continues for fulfill its role.
  • Goals
  • That the standard meets its goal. We want to make sure it aims high and meets the goal for animal welfare.
  • 1st Goal –Unnecessary harm
  • It is vague, but this allows us to use the standard to define what we mean
  • The specifty should be in the requirements
  • 2nd Goal – Reward and influence the down and feather industry
  • We are not trying to shut down or punish the industry but rather want to bring the industry along to the goals of animal welfare
  • We want to make sure they have incentives instead of punishments
  • 3rd Goal- Education and development
  • Fairly straightforward
  • Anything else missing from the goals?
  • The bell curve was brought up and that the quality of the audits and standards should be at the top of the curve and not the bottom. That all farms should strive to be the best.
  • Education and further development should be part of the goal for the farmers to continue training and their education on the Standard as well as best practices.
  • This could also help with farms who correct their bad habits for day of audit, but go back to their bad habits.
  • Could we do more unannounced audits within a two week time span?
  • Transparency to the supply chain
  • We have looked at the context to what we are trying to achieve, but we cannot pressure the middle suppliers.
  • Existing Standards
  • What other standards or legislation should we be looking at?
  • DIST (Moncler)
  • Djallraven
  • Down Codex (Mountain Equipment)
  • IDFL
  • OIA

Work Plan & Task Force Sign-ups

  • We have several different areas for everyone to help with.

1.Scope: "Hatchling to Jacket"

2.Application of the Content Claim Standard

3.Slaughter Module

4.Transport Module

5.Parent Farm Certification Module (optional)

6.Farm Module (split out a bit)

7.Requirement Types (Critical Major, Major, Minor, Recommendation)

8.Industrial Farms

9.Small Farm Groups

10.Contract Farm Groups

11.Audit Procedures (Unannounced, semi-announced, announced)

Action Items

  • Please submit any and all feedback to the current version of the RDShere.