Under the terms of the subcontract, Applied DNA, along with its traceability partner Isotech (a Stratum Reservoir company), will engage CertainT to perform isotopic testing and analysis to support cotton traceability in Pakistan.
The financial terms of the subcontract were not disclosed.
Applied DNA explained that the project is working with traceability experts, global brands, the Pakistani cotton sector and worker organisations to design, implement and evaluate the pilot traceability tool, with the aim of improving its future application and developing publicly available, commodity-independent traceability sources for enhanced due diligence.
The subcontract was said to have been issued in support of the Global Trace Protocol project, a U.S. Department of Labor-funded initiative run by LRQA (when the project was called ELEVATE) designed to reduce child and forced labor in global supply chains through traceability.
Applied DNA said the company will work with Isotech to apply best practices in isotope analysis of raw materials and products at key points in the cotton textile value chain, in line with the project’s overarching objectives.
Some of the testing components include the use of isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) on samples from farms, gins, yarn spinners and mills/production units identified by the project.
CertainT will establish a baseline as part of the pilot project for isotope testing and analysis.
According to Jeff Wheeler, director of the Global Trace Protocol project at LRQA, new import regulations and legislation now require additional documentation to verify the origin of the cotton and ensure it does not come from high-risk sources.
Wheeler said: “The Global Trace Protocol project is developing traceability technology tools that will bring greater transparency and integrity to textile value chains globally, including through our collaboration with Applied DNA.”
Applied DNA Vice President MeiLin Wan added: “Our CertainT platform uses isotope testing, DNA tags and genomic testing as forensic authentication technologies to establish traceability and prove origin. Our recent announcement with Indus Apparel of isotope testing with DNA tags demonstrates the scalability and accessibility of cotton authentication technologies that will also help Pakistan’s cotton industry comply with US import regulations and similar enforcement in other regions.”
Applied DNA’s CertainT is a textile traceability platform that uses forensic evidence with multiple proof points to verify the source and authenticity of materials and products at any time as they move through global supply chains.
LRQA has decades of expertise in assessment, advisory, inspection and cybersecurity services.
In 2021 Applied DNA collaborated with Stratum Reservoir (Isotech)a specialist in laboratory isotope analysis – a technique used to fingerprint naturally occurring organic compounds such as cotton – to support research into the traceability of cotton.
“Applied DNA bags LRQA isotopic testing pilot project in Pakistan” was originally created and published by Just Stylea brand of GlobalData.
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