Organic clothing

Organic clothing is clothing made from materials raised in on in or grown in compliance with organic agricultural standards. Organic clothing may be composed of cotton, jute, silk, ramie, or wool.[1] Retailers charge more for organic clothing because the source of the clothing's fiber are free from herbicides, pesticides, or genetically modified seeds.[2] Textiles do not need to be 100% organic to use the organic label.[3]

Benefits

Authentic organic fabrics and clothing can help the environment in a number of ways, such as:[4]

Cotton covers 2.5% of the world's cultivated land yet uses 16% of the world's insecticides, more than any other single major crop.[6] It can take almost a 1/3 pound of synthetic fertilizers to grow one pound of raw cotton in the US, and it takes just under one pound of raw cotton to make one t-shirt.[7]

Criticism

Researchers at Oxford university analyzed 71 peer-reviewed studies.[8] The meta-analysis showed that organic farming requires 84% more land.[9] The researchers concluded that both organic farming and conventional farming are worse for the environment than integrated methods which combine the best of both and new technology.[8][10] With higher productivity less area would be needed for agriculture and more would be sustained for wildlife habitats and forestry.[8]

Many high street retailers, such as H&M, Nike and Walmart market organic clothing ranges that contain chemicals from the dyeing to bleaching process, which is inconsistent with the idea of organic clothing. Many companies sell clothing made from bamboo, which is commonly labeled as "organic", however this is a false statement. Bamboo fabric is typically chemically manufactured by “cooking” the bamboo leaves and woody shoots in strong chemical solvents such as sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide, in a process also known as hydrolysis alkalization combined with multi-phase bleaching. Both sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide have been linked to serious health problems. This finished material is similar to rayon and modal, which are more accurate terms of describing bamboo fabrics.[11] Criticism also concerns the high cost of the products.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Begley, Ed (2008). Living Like Ed: A Guide to the Eco-Friendly Life. Clarkson Potter. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-307-39643-3.
  2. ↑ Plunkett, Jack W. Plunkett's apparel and textiles industry almanac. Plunkett Research Ltd. pp. 48–49. ISBN 978-1-59392-110-1.
  3. ↑ "Policy Memorandum" (PDF). USDA (May 20 2011). Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  4. ↑ Martínez-Torres, Maria Elena (2006). Organic coffee: sustainable development by Mayan farmers. Ohio University Press. pp. 119–120. ISBN 978-0-89680-247-6.
  5. 1 2 3 Minney, S. (2011). Naked Fashion: The new sustainable fashion revolution. New Internationalist Publications
  6. ↑ EJF. (2007). The deadly chemicals in cotton. Environmental Justice Foundation in collaboration with Pesticide Action Network UK: London, UK. ISBN No. 1-904523-10-2.
  7. ↑ Lauresn, S. E., Hansen, J., Knudsen, H. H., Wenzel, H., Larsen, H. F., & Kristensen, F. M. (2007). EDIPTEX: Environmental assessment of textiles. Danish Environmental Protection Agency, working report 24.
  8. 1 2 3 Organic farms not necessarily better for environment, University of Oxford, 04 Sep 12. Archived September 29, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ Does organic farming reduce environmental impacts? - A meta-analysis of European research, H.L. Tuomisto, I.D. Hodge, P. Riordan & D.W. Macdonald, Authors’ version of the paper published in: Journal of Environmental Management 112 (2012) 309-320
  10. ↑ Onko luomu oikeasti parempaa?, Helsingin Sanomat 3.2.2013.
  11. ↑ "Bamboo: Facts behind the Fiber".
  12. ↑ Schor, Juliet (2003). Sustainable planet: solutions for the twenty-first century. Beacon Press. p. 59. ISBN 978-0-8070-0455-5.


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