Canopy's revised Hot Button criteria will hand an automatic red rating to viscose and lyocell producers with unresolved forest risk, the environmental NGO's updated benchmark shows. The change removes any middle ground for man-made cellulosic fibre (MMCF) makers whose wood pulp sourcing still carries deforestation exposure.

The Hot Button Report ranks the world's viscose and lyocell producers on their wood pulp sourcing practices. Brands and retailers use it as a screening tool when selecting or auditing fibre suppliers.

What does the automatic red rating change?

Under the previous framework, producers with forest-risk supply chains could land in intermediate scoring bands while they worked on corrective action. The revision removes that buffer. A producer with unresolved forest risk now receives a red rating outright, regardless of other performance factors.

For sourcing teams, the practical effect is binary: a red-rated supplier becomes difficult to defend in audits, brand policies and customer-facing claims.

Who does this hit?

The change applies across the viscose and lyocell tiers, meaning any MMCF producer sourcing pulp from high-risk forests without resolution faces the lowest score. The revised criteria tighten the link between pulp origin and finished fibre rating.

Ecotextile News first reported the revised criteria and the automatic red-rating provision.

What should buyers do now?

The takeaway is simple: sourcing teams relying on viscose or lyocell should re-check current suppliers' Hot Button standing and demand evidence of resolved forest risk before the next order cycle.