Do Avocado Mattresses Use Chemical Flame Retardants?

No. Every Avocado mattress meets federal flammability standards using only natural materials — certified organic wool or charcoal-infused latex — with no chemical flame retardants of any kind.

Federal law requires every mattress sold in the U.S. to meet open-flame fire resistance standards (16 CFR Part 1633). Most manufacturers meet that standard using chemical additives. Some of the most widely studied are:

These are additive, not reactive, chemicals — they are not bonded to the foam. They shed with movement and wear, entering the air and household dust where they can be inhaled or absorbed.
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Avocado uses natural materials that meet and exceed federal flammability requirements through physical rather than chemical fire resistance. No chemical flame retardants, no fiberglass.

All three approaches meet 16 CFR Part 1633 without introducing any halogenated or organophosphate compounds. Our mattresses are designed this way, not because it is simpler — it is not — but because the materials that go into your bedroom also go into the air you breathe for eight hours a night.

Natural graphite powder infused in organic latex:
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The absence of chemical flame retardants is not self-reported. It is independently verified through multiple overlapping certifications:
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GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) — GOTS explicitly prohibits polyurethane foam, chemical flame retardants, and chemical adhesives in GOTS-certified finished products. Every Avocado mattress holds finished-product GOTS certification (license CU863637). This is a whole-mattress certification, not a component-level claim.
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GREENGUARD Gold — Certifies against airborne chemical emission limits specifically for bedrooms and children's rooms. Every Avocado mattress and furniture piece carries this certification, which independently verifies that no chemical off-gassing is present at harmful concentrations in indoor air.
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MADE SAFE® — Screens finished products against thousands of substances known or suspected to harm human health, including the specific flame-retardant compounds documented above. Certification requires full ingredient disclosure.
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EWG Verified® — Requires ingredient transparency and finished-product screening against strict health-based criteria. EWG's database is publicly accessible and independently maintained.
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OEKO-TEX® Standard 100, Class I — The highest OEKO-TEX category, designed for products used by babies and toddlers. Tests the finished mattress — not just the materials inside it — against human-ecological thresholds, including pesticide residues, phthalates, and heavy metals. Certification ID: 24.HUS.86422.
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Fiberglass became common in mattresses as a cost-effective flame barrier after some chemical retardants faced regulatory scrutiny. It carries its own risks: glass fibers can shed from the mattress cover during normal use and become airborne, causing skin, eye, and respiratory irritation.

Avocado mattresses contain no fiberglass. This is independently verified through our GOTS finished-product certification and MADE SAFE® screening.

Chemical flame retardants are primarily associated with polyurethane foam — the petroleum-derived material used in most conventional mattresses. Because foam is chemically reactive and highly combustible on its own, manufacturers typically require chemical additives to meet flammability testing requirements.

Avocado mattresses do not contain polyurethane foam. Our support core is GOLS-certified organic Dunlop latex — a plant-derived material that is inherently less combustible than petroleum foam and does not require chemical treatment to meet flammability standards. That single material decision changes the flame-retardant equation entirely.
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Every Avocado mattress meets federal flammability standards. None of them do it with flame-retarding chemicals.

For a full list of certifications and independent verification sources, see our Certifications page. To verify our GOTS certification directly, search for license CU863637 in the GOTS public database.