Tip o’ the Day: How Does Your Cotton Grow?
Cotton is a natural material with a lot of benefits, but cotton production - from farm to factory to your store shelf - uses a lot of resources, not to mention a lot of pesticides. Choosing organic cotton when you can will not only be better for you but better for the environment.
Conventional cotton production alone makes up about 25% of the world's insecticide use and 10% of all pesticide use. That's a lot of toxic chemicals for one industry that not only affects the farmers and workers who grow the cotton, but those pesticides also get into the air, soils and ground water contaminating wildlife and potentially the food supply.
According to the Organic Trade Association:
Organic cotton is grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment. Organic production systems replenish and maintain soil fertility, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers, and build biologically diverse agriculture.
With the demand for organic cotton on the rise, those pesticide numbers could change but it might take a while considering organics represents just 0.03% of worldwide cotton production. The United States, Turkey and India are the top three producers of organic cotton.
So next time you're cruising the aisles for t-shirts or sheets see if there's an organic cotton option. You might be surprised to find it in places you'd least expect it like The Gap, Target and at Wal-Mart. The more organic cotton purchased will send signals to cotton producers that people do want to see more organic options available.
More on cotton production:
Organic Trade Association
Pesticide Action Network North America
Sustainable Cotton Project
Here's several companies with organic cotton options featured by GO's Victoria E:
Green Style Spotlight: Maggie's Functional Organics
Green Style Spotlight: Kate Quinn Organics
Green Style Spotlight: Jonano
Green Style Spotlight: Certified Jeans
Green Style Spotlight: bgreen
Green Style Spotlight: Yoga, Tribe and Culture
Green Style Spotlight: Belle & Dean
Green Style Spotlight: American Apparel
Green Style Spotlight: Wildlife Works
More related information from GO:
Fair Trade: Environment
Eco-Friendly Yarns Promote Greener Knitting Projects
Tip o' the Day: Kitting the Way
The Green Options Interview: Andy Ruben of Wal-Mart
Fashion & Apparel
Tags: Agriculture, Daily Tips, Developing Nations, Environment, Fashion and Apparel, Home and Garden, organic cotton, Personal Care, textile
- Uncategorized
June 27th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
Yes, organic cotton is a huge improvement over conventional cotton but we should be looking at ways to shrink cotton production and replace it with hemp due to the huge quantities of water required by all cotton production. Hemp’s thirst for water is small by comparison.
December 12th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
[...] of Commerce says that the national government needs to create a market growth strategy to build a sustainable cotton textile industry. The routes to success are predicted to come through active participation in the [...]
April 13th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
[...] do you know if it is really organic cotton or not? I recently had a commenter on my other blog who was upset after ordering an [...]
May 5th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
[...] is likely to mean increased use of insecticides on crops and that economic and environmental cost will be carried by the consumer in the end. Two [...]