Ethical WickedAll our sheets and towels are made from high-quality unbleached, organic cotton. Not only are they comfortable and soft, but they also help conserve the resources of our planet.
From our suppliers fact sheets:
We produce environmentally friendly cotton goods aimed at helping to prevent pollution and health hazards. All products are 100% pure and naturally processed without the use of chlorine bleaching, synthetic dyes and are free of all toxic chemicals. Our processes also help to preserve natural resources as the bleaching and dyeing process of general fabric consumes large quantities of water and electricity. The company’s slogan is “The Right Choice for People who Care and who are Considerate.”
What is so special about organic cotton? How does it differ from regular cotton?
Organic cotton is grown without the use of toxic chemicals, replacing them with biological ‘integrated pest management’ (IPM) systems.“Composted manures and cover crops replace synthetic fertilizers; innovative weeding strategies are used instead of herbicides; beneficial insects and trap crops control insect pests; and alternatives to toxic defoliants prepare plants for harvest.” (www.sustainablecotton.org)
Organic cotton has the potential to improve the health of millions of people, reduce the production and use of toxic, synthetic chemicals and encourage a more just and open global trading system. Organic cotton is currently grown in about 20 countries around the world, with Turkey, India and the USA the largest producers.
Organic cotton is as versatile as conventional cotton. There is no technical reason why organic cotton could not replace all conventional cotton in the future. The real determining factor will be users of cotton products – like you and me! If we start asking for organic cotton, the message will get across that there is a demand for it.
The aim to lead a more natural and sustainable life has meant that many of us have turned increasingly to clothing made from natural materials over clothes made from synthetic fibres. However, there are huge environmental and health-related problems associated with the growing of the raw materials and the chemicals which are routinely used in the manufacturing of conventional clothes and fabrics.
Conventional cotton is grown on 4% of the world’s arable soil, it consumes more than 11% of the pesticides and 24% of the insecticides used annually.
Source: Organic Cotton, ed. D, Myers and S. Stolton, Intermediate Technology Publications, 1999 p. 10.
In 1998 in the US alone over 600,000 tons of active toxic chemicals were dumped on conventional cotton crops.
Source: www.foxfibre.com
40% of all conventional cotton grown in the US and 20% of the conventional cotton grown in Australia is genetically engineered. This number has certainly increased since the information was published
Source: Pesticide News 42 December 1998.
“Two types of genetically engineered cotton now commercially available in the US are cause for serious concern. Herbicide-resistant crops such as Monsanto’s “Roundup Ready” cotton allow farmers to spray more herbicides without killing their cotton plants. When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently cancelled use of the herbicide bromoxynil on cotton they stated publicly that “the use of herbicide-tolerant crops to promote particularly hazardous herbicides is not acceptable.” Cotton has also been engineered to produce an insect toxin naturally produced by the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). While Bt has also been used safely as a biological pesticide by both conventional and organic farmers for many years, its incorporation into the cotton plant will accelerate the development of resistance among pests, ultimately rendering useless a safe, natural insecticide.”
Source: Organic Cotton Directory 1998-99 produced by the Organic Fibre Council p.11
100% cotton fabrics and garments may contain up to 10% dyes which do not need to be declared anywhere.
Of all textile chemicals used in the last 15 years (including dyes and “easy-care” chemicals) 30% are hazardous to human health, 20% are sensitising and 15% are skin irritants.
Source: Baby -und die ersten Lebensjahre p.8 February 1998. (final point uses information from BUND – Bund fuer Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland)
