History
The initiative for the natureplus-Quality Seal originally came from the German specialist building products suppliers. Under the overall control of the Bundesverbands Deutscher Baustoff-Fachhandel e.V. (BDB) (Federal Association of German Specialist Building Products Suppliers), the initiators were:
• hagebau Baustoffhandelskooperation, Soltau (hagebau Building Materials Trade Co-operative)
• i&m Interpares-Mobau Baustoffhandelskooperation, Karlsruhe (Interpares-Mobau Building Materials Trade Co-operative)
• Bau-Medien-Zentrum (früher mobau Dörr Baustoff-Fachhandel), Düren (Building-Media-Centre, previously Mobau Dörr Building Materials Trade Co-operative)
• Raab Karcher Baustoffhandelskonzern, Frankfurt (Raab Karcher Building Materials Trading company)
• Hornung Naturbaustoff-Fachhandel, Stutensee (Hornung Natural Building Materials Specialist Supplier)
• Baustoff-Fachhandel Rehbock, Neustadt a. Rgb. (Building Materials Specialist Supplier Rehbock)
The BDB invited the leading test institutes, who were involved in the issuance of ecological labels in the the building sector, to take part in a common, Europe-wide initiative. The main aim was to continuously improve the advisory services provided by the specialist suppliers. From this initiative, the ARGE ecoNcert was formed. Later this became ecoNcert e.V. and then through a change of name natureplus e.V.. The founding members of ARGE ecoNcert included, among others, the following institutes:
• eco-Umweltinstitut, Köln (eco-Environmental Institute, Cologne)
• IBO Österreichisches Institut für Baubiologie und Ökologie, (Austrian Institute for Building-Biology and Ecology)
• Institut für Umwelt und Gesundheit (IUG), Fulda (Institute for the Environment and Health)
• Bremer Umweltinstitut, Bremen (Bremer Environmental Institute)
• TÜV Süddeutschland (Industrie Service), München (TÜV South Germany –Industrial Services, Munich)
On 20.04.2001, the International Association for Future-Oriented Building and Accommodation – natureplus e.V. was formed at the founding assembly in Frankfurt/Main and listed in the official register of associations. In June 2002, the first products were certified with the natureplus Quality Seal by the Association’s patroness at that time, the German federal Minister for Consumer Protection, Renate Künast.
Within a period of five years, natureplus has been able to develop quality requirements (guidelines) for around 30 types of products and to certify approximately 150 products from a significant number of manufacturers. Natureplus is the only quality seal to have achieved a recognised market position among the private labelling systems.
Today, the Association has 95 members (October 2006) and is well on its way to reaching its goal of being self-financing.