Down and feather labelling

Requirements for the labelling of down and feather consumer textile articles are governed by the Textile Labelling Act and the Textile Labelling and Advertising Regulations. This guide is intended to assist in clarifying the labelling requirements for down and feather filling materials. Refer to the Textile Labelling Assessment Tool for additional requirements.

Down fillings, feather fillings and down and feather-filled blends can differ greatly in cost and quality. Dealers need to verify the accuracy of labelling on shipments of fill and plumage filled articles because there may be substantial differences between the cost and quality of goods ordered and those received.

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Products Labelled Down

Products labelled down: Worksheet

Vest Illustration

  • Dealers may label a plumage product as "down" only if it meets either the generic definition for down or for commercial down. Note that the declaration "down" may not be preceded by words or figures indicating 100% on a plumage product filled with commercial down.
  • Articles labelled as "down" must be accompanied by the statement, "Note: This product contains an amount of feathers not exceeding that allowable by law".
  • At least 90% of the plumage must be from the stated bird of origin.
  • Articles in which the body fill is down but other sections such as sleeves, hood, collar, or pocket are filled with another material that could be mistaken for down, should not be represented as "down-filled". It would be considered false and misleading to represent such a product down-filled unless it is clear that only the body of the garment is down-filled (for example, "down-filled body").
  • Expressions such as "down-like" may be used only if the product does in fact have some of the properties of a down product and it is clearly stated that the fill is not down (for example, "down-like polyester fibrefill").
  • When down or any other fibre which is required to be shown by its generic name is a reclaimed fibre, the word "reclaimed", "reprocessed" or "reused" must be shown immediately preceding the generic name.

Products with Feather Fillings

Products with feather fillings: Worksheet

Pillow Illustration

  • Dealers may label a feather-filled product as "feather" if it meets the generic definition of feather or the appropriate definition of commercial feather.
  • The declaration "feather" must be preceded by the word "waterfowl", "landfowl" or the name of the bird of origin.
  • The declaration "feather" may not be preceded by words or figures indicating 100% on a plumage product filled with commercial feathers.
  • At least 90% of the plumage must be from the stated bird of origin.
  • When feather or any other fibre which is required to be shown by its generic name is a reclaimed fibre, the word "reclaimed", "reprocessed" or "reused" must be shown immediately preceding the generic name.

Products Using Down Blends

Products using down blends: Worksheet

Sleeping bag Illustration

  • Where the blend consists of down from different species, or a blend of down and feathers, the composition must fall within the tolerance of commercial down and/or commercial feather. (note: the permitted 5% tolerance which applies to the percentage disclosures on textile blends does not apply to blends of commercial down and/or feather. This is to avoid a double tolerance.)
  • The declaration of "feather" must be preceded by the word "waterfowl", "landfowl" or the name of the bird of origin.
  • When the blend consists of down and feathers or a non-plumage textile fibre, the percentages of each must generally be shown in the order of predominance by mass.
  • Where crushed feathers, are part of the blend, the label, for example, should indicate "Fill: Crushed (waterfowl, landfowl or the name of the bird of origin) feathers".
  • At least 90% of the plumage must be from the stated bird of origin.
  • Words or figures suggesting 100% must not be used on products containing commercial down.
  • When down or any other fibre which is required to be shown by its generic name is a reclaimed fibre, the word "reclaimed", "reprocessed" or "reused" must be shown immediately preceding the generic name.

The following examples have been provided to illustrate the labelling of common plumage products.

Down-filled vest

Down filled vest : Example

Vest Illustration

An acceptable disclosure label for a down-filled nylon vest would be as follows:

Outer Shell:
100% nylon
Fill:
down

Note: This product contains an amount of feathers not exceeding that allowable by law

Extérieur :
100 % nylon
Remplissage :
duvet

À Noter : La quantité de plumes dans ce produit satisfait aux exigences de la loi

CA 00000

Down and feather filled vest

Down and feather filled vest: Example

Acceptable disclosure label

Vest Illustration

An acceptable disclosure label for a 50% down and 50% waterfowl feather-filled nylon vest would be as follows:

Outer Shell:
100% nylon
Fill:
50% down
50% waterfowl feathers

Extérieur :
100 % nylon
Remplissage :
50 % duvet
50 % plume l'oiseaux aquatiques

CA 00000

Down and non-plumage filled nylon sleeping bag

Down and other fibre filled products: Example

Down and non-plumage filled sleeping bag

Down and Non-Plumage Filled Sleeping Bag Illustration

An acceptable disclosure label for a 50% down and 50% polyester-filled nylon sleeping bag would be as follows:

Outer Shell:
100% nylon
Fill:
50% down
50% polyester

Extérieur:
100% nylon
Remplissage:
50% duvet
50% polyester

CA 00000


Note: Upholstered or stuffed articles (furniture, pillows, outerwear etc.) destined for sale in the Provinces of Ontario, Quebec or Manitoba fall under provincial legislation which regulates fillings and requires special labelling.

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