Responsible Alpaca Standard

The Responsible Alpaca Standard (RAS) is a voluntary standard which safeguards the welfare of alpacas and the ecosystems around them. A professional, third-party certification body audits each stage in the supply chain starting at the farm and certification helps to maintain the identity of alpaca fiber from certified farms through to final products. RAS farmers are evaluated against animal welfare, land management, and social requirements. Some, but not all, critical requirements include: 1) Access to natural pasture; 2) Shearing shall be performed by - or under the direct supervision of - a competent shearer; 3) No rough physical contact such as kicking, tripping, throwing, or dropping animals, dragging, or pulling by the fleece, tail, ears, head, or neck, or dragging by the back legs. RAS is owned and managed by Textile Exchange. Learn more here: https://textileexchange.org/about.