What Is RDS Certified Down?
RDS certified down comes from ducks and geese raised on farms audited to the Responsible Down Standard, which bans live-plucking and force-feeding. Every company from the farm to the brand is certified, so the down is tracked into the product. It's an animal welfare standard and doesn't cover the fabric or chemistry.
What RDS checks
- Bird welfare from hatching to slaughter
- No live-plucking, no molt-harvesting and no force-feeding
- Third-party audits of farms and slaughterhouses
- Chain of custody for the down at every later site, with transaction certificates for each shipment
What RDS doesn’t cover
- The shell fabric, lining and any finish on the jacket
- How the down is washed or treated after slaughter. Later sites are checked for chain of custody only.
- Fill power or other quality claims
How to check a RDS certificate
An RDS claim has to show the RDS logo, the brand's license number or TE-ID, and the name of its certification body.
- Find the number. It's printed with the logo and the certifier's name, as a license number or a TE-ID.
- Search it. Enter it in Textile Exchange's Find a Certified Company tool, filter by RDS, and check that the certificate is valid.
RDS questions
Can an RDS product contain other down?
Only recycled down certified to RCS or GRS. Any virgin down in an RDS product has to be RDS certified, and products can carry the claim from 5% RDS down and feathers.
Does RDS mean the down is hypoallergenic or chemical-free?
No. RDS is about how the birds were treated and where the down went. It doesn't test the down or the finished product for residues or allergens.
Is RDS part of Textile Exchange's Materials Matter Standard?
No. Textile Exchange says RDS stays outside the Materials Matter Standard and keeps running under its existing framework, while its wool, mohair, alpaca and recycled standards move into the new system.