RAL (Committee of the German Reich for Terms and Conditions of Sale) was established in 1925 as a joint initiative by private businesses and the government of the day. Initially, its task was to standardise precise technical terms and conditions of sale in the interests of rationalisation. Today, under its new name RAL German Institute for Quality Assurance and Certification, it is the recognised institution for efficient and reliable labelling of products and services of all kinds.

RAL Quality Certification Marks are voluntary regulatory measures used by business and are free of any kind of state influence. A comprehensive system of regular self-monitoring and neutral external monitoring helps to ensure that the quality prescribed by the relevant quality specifications is maintained.

RAL's areas of expertise include quality assurance (e.g. in the case of the German Certification Association for Professional Textile Services), the RAL colour system, the wool RAL Mark and the "Blue Angel", probably the most well-known label for products and services. Since 1992, RAL has also been responsible in Germany for awarding the European environmental RAL Mark the Euro-Marguerite (the EU Flower).