Our Standard Development Process
We develop science-based, voluntary consensus standards through an open, transparent process that prioritizes public input and balanced feedback from interested parties. This includes using our Standards Steering Committee as our consensus body to approve major revisions of our standards.
Principles
- Market acceptance
- Technical excellence
- Transparency
- Openness
- Consensus
Our Development Process
Green Seal follows a structured consensus procedure to develop and revise our standards. These steps are designed to ensure scientific rigor, balanced stakeholder participation, meaningful public input, and thorough review before a standard is finalized:
- Public notification: We notify our community of an upcoming revision or new standard development
- Participation: We ensure balanced participation of interested parties throughout our development process
- Criteria development: We use a life cycle approach combined with market research and participant feedback to develop leadership criteria into a public comment draft
- Review: Our Standards Steering Committee reviews our public comment draft for approval
- Public comment and stakeholder consultation: We post our public comment draft for a minimum of 60 days
- Opposition resolution: We aim to resolve any substantive opposition to our proposed criteria
- Approval: Our Standards Steering Committee reviews the final draft of the standard before issuance
- Response to comments: We respond publicly to any comments submitted during the public comment period
- Standard issuance: We publish the new edition of the standard on our website
- Governance Review: Our Board of Directors ensures we have followed our development procedures
Green Seal approved a new governance model in February 2025. Existing Green Seal standards were developed under a prior governance model, which can be found here. To browse standards records, visit the Library of Standards Documents.
Our Standard Revision Process
We review most standards every three to five years. In some cases, standards require updates to account for changes in the market and emerging science. We may also conduct more focused revisions to resolve minor issues in the standards. Examples include expanding the scope, updating lists of prohibited substances, resolving difficulties, or clarifying requirements. These updates are reviewed by our Standards Steering Committee, and in cases of major revisions are released for public comment.
See standards currently under revision here.
Our Life Cycle Approach
When we develop a standard, we consider the health and environmental impacts of the product across all stages of its life cycle, from raw material selection to manufacturing, packaging, use, and disposal. This means Green Seal certified products meet truly comprehensive health and sustainability standards, from beginning to end.
Collaborative Standards
We believe that a collaborative approach leads to better solutions for everyone. We develop our science-based standards through an open, transparent process that gathers feedback from the market to create standards that truly support market transformation.
Our Standards Steering Committee is made up of a balanced mix of Green Seal’s interest categories: producers, users, and general interest. This captures perspectives from across the supply chain and practitioner community while prioritizing scientific rigor to create standards that are ambitious yet feasible.
International Best Practices
Our standard development procedures follow internationally recognized best practices. We develop voluntary consensus standards designed for real-world impact by aligning with the ANSI Essential Requirements for Due Process. We use the ISEAL Code of Good Practice for Sustainability Systems as a reference to guide a transparent, outcomes-focused standard development process.
Other Guidelines
Our standard development procedures also meet the requirements for credible ecolabels from the following organizations: