Masters of Linen
MASTERS OF LINEN® is a registered mark and sign of excellence for linen 100% Made in EUROPE, from field to yarn to fabric. A benchmark for both the trade and the consumer.
Club Masters of Linen gathers and promotes the certified European textile companies: spinners, weavers and knitters who have opted for 100% European traceability and want to offer their clients – brands and/or consumers – a differentiation tool a high value-added identity.
The Masters of Linen logo preserves and enhances the Made in Europe claim, answering Consumer and Corporate Social Responsibility expectations:
— Made in Europe, from field to yarn to fabric
— Sustainable production, respecting the environment
from European Flax® fibre: no irrigation, no gmo, no waste, carbon sink, field retting, mechanical scutching
to yarn, fabric and finishing according to highest regulations
and biodegradable
— Social ethics, European know-how and jobs
— Proximity, local, agricultural+textile land identity
— Low carbon footprint
— Service
— Excellence and innovation
Principles
European Spinners and Weavers or Circular knitters commit to support European industry and strict traceability ; each of these steps must be certified. Yearly audits are performed by companies’ Auditors or one of the approved certification bodies: Centrocot-IT et Centexbel-BE. Certification requirements and process: see 'How to join Club Masters of Linen ?'
Masters of Linen® certifies linen 100% MADE IN EUROPE, from fibre to yarn to fabric. Therefore, a fabric is certified when:
— Woven or knitted by a certified weaver or knitter
— Made from linen yarns 100% Masters of Linen® certified and of final composition pure linen, majority linen or linen union
Transfer of certification
Brands and retailers receive the certification of their linens without audit or cost, directly from weavers or circular knitters; or from spinners in case of flatbed knitwear. The transfer shall clearly specify in writing the articles that comply with above criteria, by using the claim 'Masters of Linen® certified', whether in an invoice, an order confirmation or any separate document.
Certified Spinners are not allowed to transfer logos/labels directly to clients producing fabrics: weavers, circular knitters.
Certified companies and their clients - brands and retailers - benefit from the registered Masters of Linen logo and communication tools, see 'Your communication tools'
CLUB MASTERS OF LINEN benefits from a specific timetable to promote its members through collective and individual projects. Its strategy is set by the Club Masters of Linen Committee - the governing body. Its actions are coordinated by Marie Demaegdt, head of the Textile Department at CELC: club@mastersoflinen.com
LINEN: UNIQUELY EUROPEAN
Cultivated at close-proximity, flax is grown in a wide coastal band of Western Europe stretching from the South of Normandy in Northern France through Belgium and the Netherlands : from Caen to Amsterdam. The only plant textile fiber originating on the continent, European linen cultivation cannot be relocated, its excellence is thanks to a unique combination : a natural, damp ocean climate, flax’s low thermal density, a rich soil and the experience of flax growers.
AN UNUSUAL INDUSTRY
10 000 companies in 14 European Union countries are involved in the linen industry. Flax cultivation has a unique role in the agro-industial industry.
From plant to finished fabrics, all stages of production and transformation are represented and different professions in the industry work together from growers and scutchers to spinners, weavers, knitters, finishers and traders.
N°1 WORLDWIDE
80% of the world’s production of scutched flax fibers are originated from Europe, and France is the world leader. Flax is a rare product which represents less than 1% of all textile fibers consumed worldwide.