For most of its 25-year history, bluesign has primarily operated behind the scenes of the textile and apparel supply chain, working with brands, manufacturers and chemical suppliers. With its new “THE UNSEEN PROCESS” campaign, the organization is now seeking to build greater awareness among consumers.

The campaign focuses on processes that are generally invisible when consumers purchase textile and apparel products, including chemical management, manufacturing standards and verification systems. According to bluesign, growing regulatory scrutiny of environmental marketing claims and increasing caution among brands over broad terms such as “sustainable” and “eco-friendly” are creating a need for greater substantiation, traceability and recognizable third-party verification.

bluepass brings verification closer to consumers

At the same time, bluesign is introducing bluepass, a new consumer-facing designation designed to make verified upstream processes more visible and understandable at the product level.

The timing coincides with significant changes to sustainability communication in the European Union. From September 27, 2026, the rules implementing the EU’s Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive will apply. Among other provisions, sustainability labels will only be permitted if they are established by public authorities or based on a certification scheme that meets the requirements of the Directive. This puts greater scrutiny on proprietary sustainability labels and strengthens requirements for independent verification and substantiation of environmental claims.

The UNSEEN campaign is scheduled to launch on September 20, just days before the new EU rules start to apply. For bluesign, the campaign marks a strategic shift from its traditional B₂B focus towards greater consumer awareness, while bluepass is intended to make verified processes within the textile supply chain more recognizable at the point where consumers encounter a product.