Green Cotton

HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Photosource: www.newworldbiomass.com

5 Things you can do on Earth Day to make a difference.

(1) Attend your areas local events – see more at Earth Day Network (and highlights below)
(2) Ride your bike, walk or take public transportation to wherever you go.
(3) Recycle.
(4) Read more about Climate Change and call your local senator/representative.
(5) Take the Sustainability Tour. Learn how about our US environmental footprint. Topics include waste, buildings, climate, water, energy, food, materials, transportation. ways to improve. Source Center for Sustainable Systems.

Inspirational quotes for the day:

“The good news is we know what to do. The good news is, we have everything we need now to respond to the challenge of global warming. We have all the technologies we need; more are being developed. And as they become available and become more affordable when produced in scale, they will make it easier to respond. But we should not wait, we cannot wait, we must not wait.” — Al Gore

“To waste, to destroy, our natural resources, to skin and exhaust the land instead of using it so as to increase its usefulness, will result in undermining in the days of our children the very prosperity which we ought by right to hand down to them.” — Theodore Roosevelt

A look back on Earth Day through history:
According to Wikipedia, Earth Day 2007 was one of the largest Earth Days to date, with an estimated billion people participating in the activities in thousands of places like Kiev, Ukraine; Caracas, Venezuela; Tuvalu; Manila, Philippines; Togo; Madrid, Spain; London; and New York. Founded by the organizers of the first April 22 Earth Day in 1970, Earth Day Network promotes environmental citizenship and year round progressive action worldwide.

Earth Day Network is a driving force steering environmental awareness around the world. Through Earth Day Network, activists connect change in local, national, and global policies. Earth Day Network’s international network reaches over 17,000 organizations in 174 countries, while the domestic program engages 5,000 groups and over 25,000 educators coordinating millions of community development and environmental protection activities throughout the year. Earth Day is the only event celebrated simultaneously around the globe by people of all backgrounds, faiths and nationalities. More than a half billion people participate in Earth Day Network campaigns every year.

What is happening around the world this week?
1. In San Francisco, Green Apple Festival is hosting its second annual event in Golden Gate Park. Should be a wild and fun event with Bill McKibben as a guest speaker, live music and a goal to get 1 million calls to congress for tougher Climate Change legislation.
2. In Barcelona, organizers are hosting the Catalunya Earth Fair to be held in Parc de la Ciutadella. Theme: the Fight Against Genetically Modified Organism which Poison the Planet.

3. In Buenos Aires, there is an event in Plaza Naciones Unidas (United Nations Square), organized by Butterfly Comunicación Ambiental. Theme: not an academic, entertaining but also with purpose to raise awareness. The event will target the 4 main environmental issues in Argentina: Garbage, Energy, Water, Transportation.

4. In Miami, Green Apple Festival comes for the first time with an event for the whole family. Environmental leaders, community activists, A-list talent and top speakers will all CALL FOR CLIMATE, a demand for immediate, effective and equitable action against global warming.

5. Tokyo is holding an event in Yoyogi Park, organized by Earthday Tokyo, a Social Movement promoting a greener economy. Focus topics include Earthday Energy Action, managed 100% by green energy, solar, bio-diesel and hydrogen. Earthday Food Action: Organic, locally produced, non-GMO food will be available from over 40 different restaurants, cafes on site. Earthday Agri Action : Organic Farmers Market.

Thousands of other events are happening with an estimated one billion people participating around the world. Join in the fun and do your share.

Photosource: NYTimes.com/2005

There are a number of important differences between conventional and organic cotton. Starting from the tilling of the soil to the selection of seeds, labor paid and water used, organic cotton farming requires significant investment of time and resources to radically overhaul conventional cotton growing methods.

Cotton is a crop that attracts a wide range of insects (eg cutworm, cotton bollworm, tobacco bollworm, army worm, loopers, aphids, whitefly, spider mite among others). This is one of the reasons why it is one of the largest pesticide dependent crops in the world.

The following table outlines some of the major differences at each stage of the growing process. Sources used for this table include: National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, Organic Exchange, Organic Trade Association (OTA), and Harmony Art Organic Designs. For more information on organic cotton certification, please visit OTA or OneCert.

ORGANIC VS. CONVENTIONAL COTTON COMPARED

Click to enlarge images. The following chart (2 pages) was created for Green Cotton using the sources mentioned above.

For a similar chart by Harmony Art Ogranic Designs, please visit her beautiful website: http://www.harmonyart.com/

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Photo source: looporganic.com

It is clear that producing organic cotton, especially certified organic cotton, costs more. The transition from conventional growing to organic growing can be a significant burden on the small to medium size farmer.

While it is true that certified organic cotton can receive a price premium, worth the cost of investment, the process of certification can take months to years. Meanwhile, the farmer must invest thousands of dollars in transforming its farming practices to meet the certification requirements.

Organic farming upgrades include:
• Transition to zero pesticide use (FYI cotton happens to be one of the highest-pesticide dependent crops in the world so transitioning the crop to no pesticides and still yielding a productive, viable crop is no small feat). See Green Cotton for more information.
• Better use of water management
• Must be grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment.
• Farming production systems must replenish and maintain soil fertility.
• Farming must reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers; and,
• Organic farming must build biologically diverse agriculture.

While the above list of organic farming requirements are all terrific, they are, as one can imagine, incredibly costly. Unless a farmer can ensure that the new crop will yield the price premium it deserves, transitioning over to these methods could mean the end of their business.

We have all read lately about the 3 and 4 fold surge in organic cotton demand. For example, organic cotton sales, not including other organic fibers, reached $1.1 billion in 2006 and is projected to double to $2+ billion in 2007 (Organic Exchange 2007). More and more retailers are demanding use of organic fabrics, including some of the largest ones (e.g. Wal-Mart, Barney’s and Target). At the same time, the supply can not easily keep up with demand, especially when certified organic farming can take years to establish.

As noted in the above requirements, it can be very risky for a farmer to transition too quickly unless they can be assured that there is a buyer. Furthermore, because the organic transition can take years to complete, the in between years mean higher costs for farmers and potentially low returns if not going out of business.

There are some retailers however who are recognizing this problem, AND in addition to being benevolent, happen to be the largest potential buyers of the organic cotton themselves. As such they are willing to step in and ease the transition for farmers by buying their transition product at the premium price. To be specific, Wal-Mart recently offered to pay transition farmers, those that are converting their farming practices from conventional to organic, the premium price for organic, even though their product is not yet certified. Side question: Is Wal-Mart going to label this product in their stores as organic cotton? This is one issue, since there is A LOT of organic cotton on the market that is not truly certified organic. Suppliers tend to overuse the term for the benefit of marketing, without communicating the whole truth as to whether it is CERTIFIED or not. This is a side note, but something for consumers to be aware of when they shop for organic clothing…

All in all, by Wal-Mart paying the interim premium price, it helps the farmers lower their risk, remain in business, AND be well-positioned to provide the increased supply needed of organic cotton to buyers such as Wal-Mart and Barney’s who want the organic cotton.

Note: Organic Certification requires a 3rd party organization to verify that farmers are using the methods and materials allowed in organic certification. Find out more about organic cotton certification at the Organic Trade Association .

You can also check out OneCert, one of the oldest and most reputable certification organizations on the market: http://www.onecert.net/

You can read more on this particular issue at Reuters.