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Cradle to Cradle Certified®

Design your products according to circular economy principles from ‘cradle to cradle’. Put your brand at the center of circular design with globally recognized sustainable product certification, assessed across five dimensions from material health to social justice.

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What is Cradle to Cradle®?

The Cradle to Cradle approach aims to transform products into a new resource at the end of each life cycle, rather than a linear cycle from “birth to waste” (cradle to grave). Cradle to Cradle Certified® is an independent product certification scheme that translates this approach into concrete criteria and can be applied across different product categories.

The certification aims not only to reduce environmental impact, but to turn material flows into “continuous positive cycles”. Your product must no longer just be “less harmful”, but reusable, recyclable and safely recycled back into the biological or technical cycle.

Material Health

All ingredients are evaluated for toxicology; substances harmful to human and environmental health are gradually removed from the formulation.

Product Circularity

The modular design, easy disassembly and monomaterial approach aim to ensure that the product can safely enter the technical or biological cycle at the end of its life cycle.

Social Justice

Human rights, working conditions, ethical procurement and community impacts in the supply chain are secured through company policies and audit mechanisms.

C2C Assessment Areas

The Cradle to Cradle Certified® Product Standard evaluates products in five main categories and sets key criteria for each category.

All components in the product are broken down to certain thresholds and evaluated for toxicology. The aim is to gradually remove substances harmful to human and environmental health from the product formulation.

At the end of the product’s life cycle, it is designed for safe reuse, recycling or entry into the technical/biological cycle. Modular design, easy disassembly, monomaterial approach and efficient recycling become critical in this area.

Greenhouse gas and air emissions are assessed throughout the production and supply chain. Climate targets, renewable energy utilization and energy efficiency performance are considered in this category.

Industrial water use, wastewater quality and water management processes are assessed. The aim is to have a positive impact on local ecosystems and communities in terms of water resources or to minimize damage.

Human rights, labor conditions, ethical sourcing and community impacts in the supply chain are examined. Company policies, audits and grievance mechanisms are part of this topic.

Put Your Product at the Center of the Circular Economy…

Get a free pre-assessment for Cradle to Cradle Certified® product certification from our team of experts and let us map out your circular design roadmap.

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Certificate Levels

the road from BRONZE to PLATINUM

The Cradle to Cradle Certified® program uses a structure of Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum levels to give designers and manufacturers the opportunity for gradual progression. For each category, the product is rated at one of these levels and the final level of certification is determined by the lowest level among the categories.

For example, if material health is Gold and water management is Silver, the overall certification level is Silver. This gives teams a clear picture of where further improvements are needed.

Cradle to Cradle® Certification Process

With USB Certification, the C2C journey is designed as a holistic process ranging from strategy definition, inventory and data collection, pre-assessment and design improvement to independent assessment and certification.

  • 1
    Strategy and Scope

    Clarification of target product family, target level and market claims

  • 2
    Inventory and Data Collection

    Compilation of bill of materials, supplier data and shop floor performance data

  • 3
    Preliminary Assessment (Gap Analysis)

    Analysis of the difference between the current situation and C2C requirements in five categories

  • 4
    Design and Process Improvement

    Implementation of formulation revision, material simplification and supplier revisions

  • 5
    Independent Assessment and Certification

    Assessment of authorized C2C organization in five categories and issuance of certificates

  • 6
    Periodic Renewal

    Renewal of the certificate valid for a certain period of time and maintaining continuous improvement

Frequently Asked Questions

It is not a legal requirement, but it provides a strong competitive advantage for brands with green building certifications (LEED, BREEAM), circular economy goals, sustainable product portfolio and corporate ESG commitments. Contact USB Certification for more information.

Ideally, it is best to start at the concept and material selection stage. It can also be applied to existing products, but is more likely to require a design change. You can get consultancy from USB Certification to make C2C principles part of the design brief in your new product development processes.

Certification is product-based, but for portfolio strategy, moving to a product family or series makes marketing and supply management easier. You can reach out to USB Certification to discuss together which product family is the best place for you to start.

Cradle to Cradle Certified® applies to a wide range of products such as building materials, interior products, textiles, packaging, cleaning and personal care products, furniture and electronic components. Request a free pre-assessment from USB Certification to get a conformity assessment for your product.

Certifications are usually valid for a certain period of time (e.g. two years) and you are expected to show progress for renewal. Moving to the new level or maintaining the current level depends on the performance of your design and supply chain team. Contact USB Certification for your renewal process.

The product is rated at one of the Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum levels in the categories of material health, product circularity, clean air and climate protection, water and soil management and social justice. The final certification level is determined by the lowest level across categories. Use our USB Certification gap analysis service to see in which categories you need improvement.