What the label actually has to say
Fibre content by percentage, care instructions covering wash, dry, iron and bleach, and in most markets a country-of-origin declaration. The exact requirements vary by destination market, and a label has to satisfy the strictest market the shipment is actually going to, not the easiest one on your customer list.
Treat the label wording with the same care as the invoice. It is a legal claim about the product, not a design element the pattern-maker finalises last.
Why the factory's number and the lab's number disagree
A factory usually quotes fibre content from the yarn order, not from a test on the finished, dyed and washed fabric. Dyeing, finishing and blending at the mill can shift the real ratio by several points without anyone intending to mislabel anything.
A blend labelled 95 percent cotton, 5 percent elastane that tests at 88 and 12 is a mislabelled product regardless of intent, and the correction happens on your invoice at destination, not the factory's. Ask for a fibre content test on the finished fabric, not a specification sheet describing the yarn that went into it.
Country of origin is a separate question
Where the fabric is woven and where the garment is cut and sewn can be two different countries, and origin marking generally follows wherever the last substantial transformation happened, not where the raw material was grown or spun.
Get the origin claim confirmed by your customs broker in the destination market before it goes on a single label. This is a jurisdiction-specific question the factory is not positioned to answer for you.
When to finalise the label
After the bulk fabric is approved, not against the tech pack fabric used to get the order started. A label written before bulk approval can be technically wrong the day the bulk fabric ships, because a dye lot or a finishing step can move the composition just enough to matter.
Lock the label copy the same week you lock the bulk fabric, and keep both tied to the same batch reference. A label without a batch behind it proves nothing if the shipment is ever questioned.
- The label has to satisfy the strictest destination market in the shipment, not the easiest one.
- A factory's fibre content comes from the yarn order. Test the finished, dyed fabric before you trust the number on the label.
- Country of origin follows the last substantial transformation. Confirm it with a customs broker, not the factory.
- Finalise the label copy after the bulk fabric is approved, tied to the same batch reference.
