Green Cotton

Green Cotton’s devotion to eco-fashion and style includes a broader inclusion of sustainability. Sustainability to us means not only sustainable environmental practices and sourcing, but also attention to the people and communities that make up our environments (and our products and companies). To this end, we are interested in fair labor standards, empowerment of women worldwide, and social responsibility. One issue that has come into the news this week concerns Hershey’s chocolate.

Photosource: www.businessweek.com

You may be very familiar with the Hershey’s kiss,  and even love it, but this love does not appear be to trickling down to all levels of Hershey’s production and processing of their little kisses. Hershey’s is one of few large chocolate companies to have yet to establish fair trade certified and organic chocolates.

To help speed up the process, on June 23rd, Green America and partners at the International Labour Rights Forum (ILRF), the Organic Consumer’s Association, and Global Exchange announced a national day for action aimed at improving the lives of cocoa farmers all over the world, and stopping the abusive child labor that is prevalent within this industry.

Photosource: laborrightsblog.typepad.com

The partners ask all their members, supporters, and others interested to call on Hersey’s Food Corporation – one of the largest chocolate producers in America – to obtain third-party fair trade certification. And when I said “call on” Hersey’s, I mean literally make a 2 minute phone call to the corporation. A script and phone numbers of those who need to hear about the plight of cocoa farmers have been prepared for the caller, so all you need to do is pick up your phone!

Ultimately, the aim of this campaign is to get Hersey’s (one of the biggest producers of chocolate worldwide) to produce all fair trade and organic certified chocolate and sugar in all their products. With some recent advancements in the corporate chocolate world, such as Cadbury’s fair trade chocolate line, this goal seems not only a realistic, but a smart move to make. Fair Trade certification is a good competitive move in a market where consumers are increasingly demanding more eco and fair trade products. While this campaign started as a National Day of Action on Tuesday June 23rd, 2009, the lines are open until Hersey’s makes a move.

So next time you go to get a Hersey’s “Kiss” remember the children and other workers behind that to cocoa and step up to offer them a fair wage and in good working conditions. Fair trade certification is one of the best ways to ensure this. Be a part of the change:  take two minutes, go to www.organicconsumers.org and place a call.

By: Julia Rea

Photosource: http://pipeline.refinery29.com

Beth Ditto, favored mascot of the fashion world, has recently developed a clothing line for Arcadia Group devoted to plus size women such as herself. She is featured in the front page story of the “Style” section in the New York Times. The article focuses on how for the most part high fashion has left out larger women from their collections, but as the number of women in this group grow, this group of women cannot be avoided. About 17 percent of teenagers are overweight now, three times what it was only a generation ago according to the surgeon general’s office. So of course, smart designers are figuring out the best ways to tap into this market. But it seems that for the most part these women want the same styles that their thinner women friends wear, but just in sizes they will fit.

A few prominent women (such as Beth Ditto) want their voice to be heard and make great designs available in plus sizes. She was finally offered the opportunity to test out her own creativity with her latest collection for Evans, the plus size division of Arcadia Group.

Girls have learned to become comfortable in their own skin and want to accentuate those areas they are most proud of. More chic designers such as Karen Kane and Kiyonna have started a plus size line for sale at boutiques, as well as larger chains such as Forever 21, Target, and H & M. So our question of course remains, has this general trend in growing plus size clothing and styles transcended general fashion and reached the eco-fashion world?

We are glad to report the answer is yes, eco-fashion is increasingly inclusive of the plus size market as well! There are a number of companies who now supply plus size eco-friendly clothing. While some may not be as close to young high fashion as Karen Kane and Kiyonna, they are still styles I could love! BellaOnline’s Large & Lovely’s editor, M. E. Wood, has complied a list of plus size eco-designers that we can’t begin to cover.

One of our favorites was Diane Kennedy, who offers clothing up to 3X made from not only organic cotton, but also Soy, Bamboo, Tencel and natural Silk. As a bigger girl herself, Ms. Kennedy worked backwards starting as a plus size designer and just expanded to making normal small, medium and large sizes last year. Her designs are classy, beautiful and soft, and can make any woman feel comfortable in her own skin.

Photosource: www.splendicity.com

Another amazing eco-chic plus size designer is Blue Fish Barclay Studios. Blue Fish is based in Taos, New Mexico but is available for sale online. Blue Fish specializes in offering organic cotton and hemp clothing in free flowing design and earth loving colors to bring out everyone’s inner beauty. They offer regular and plus sizes up to 22.

Photosource: http://www.barclaystudio.com/

Last but definitely not least, Lundstrom offers eco-chic clothing up to sizes 18-24 that do have a younger high fashion feel. While all Lundstrom clothing is not eco, their bamboo line is a favorite for eco-fashionistas. This jacket, for example, is crafted from a recycled corn polyster blend, and is available in sizes up to 24.

Photosource: www.lundstrom.ca

So the first steps toward plus size eco-fashion have certainly been taken, but we can always do more!

For complete larger ist of eco-chic boutiques offering plus sizes, see M.E. Wood’s article on BellaOnline.

By: Julia Rea

Cotton bolls ready for harvest, Wikipedia

Some time ago, we covered the topic of organic vs. conventional cotton on Green Cotton with great interest. Due to the popularity of this post, we’d like to revisit the issues with some fresh facts and perspectives.

Though the organic cotton market continues to grow every year, with more and more farmers converting part or all of their farms to organic, the overall market remains extremely small, especially when compared to the overall cotton industry (less than 1%). With this in mind, the following post aims to shed renewed light on the scope of the global cotton market and the extent to which it is utilizing pesticides, insecticides and water among other resources.

Photosource: Treehugger (ad by Cotton, Inc. for Cotton made in the USA)

Cotton is a Major World Crop

•    Cotton is grown on 76 million acres world-wide, representing approximately 2.4% of global arable land.

•    Cotton is grown in over 100 countries with an estimated 50 million farmers globally. China, United States, India, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and West Africa account for over 75% of global production.

•    Cotton has a deep history in human civilization and has been a staple crop for hundreds of years, being spun, woven, and dyed since prehistoric times. According to wikipedia, “cotton clothed the people of ancient India, Egypt, and China. Hundreds of years before the Christian era cotton textiles were woven in India with matchless skill, and their use spread to the Mediterranean countries.”

•    Between 40%-47% of the world’s textiles are made from cotton, equaling a $ 334 billion industry as of 2004. However, certified organic cotton represents a mere .1% of the cotton grown in the world.

Cotton is One of the Most Pesticide-Intensive Crops in the World

•  Over 90% of cotton production involves the use of synthetic chemicals and cotton accounts for 22.5-25% of insecticides used worldwide and 8-10% of total pesticides.

•  In the U.S., 25% of all pesticides used are for cotton. Pesticides, herbicides and insecticides contaminate waterways and ecosystems and cause health problems among workers exposed.

•  Up to 1/3 of a pound of chemicals including pesticides are needed to produce enough cotton for a t-shirt, and 3/4 of a pound for a pair of jeans.

Conventional cotton production also uses various synthetic chemicals in the finishing and dying process, all of which potentially leak into surrounding eco-systems, affect workers and may ultimately be absorbed into wearers’ skin.

•  According to the World Health Organization (WHO) as stated on wikipedia, 20,000 deaths result each year from pesticide poisoning in developing countries, many of which are due to cotton farming.

•    Cotton also absorbs more water than most crops. It can take more than 20,000 litres of water to produce 1kg of cotton; equivalent to a single T-shirt and pair of jeans. 73% of global cotton harvest comes from irrigated land.

With the above in mind, it is increasingly important to consider the implications of buying or choosing organic cotton vs conventional.Though organic cotton is typically more expensive, it is arguably more reflective of the actual costs of growing and producing cotton in a sustainable manner. In addition, the more demand for organic cotton there is, ultimately the greater the supply and the prices will go down (like we saw in the food industry with organic milk and other products).

While organic cotton still requires a lot of water (as does conventional), is definitely a step in the right direction. Given the thousand year + history of cotton in culture and society, it is doubtful that we will give up this crop anytime soon. As such, the more we can grow, harvest, spin, dye and finish the fiber in a responsible and sustainable manner, the better off we will be now and into the future.

Primary sources used for this post include Organic Exchange, World Wildlife Federation (WWF) and Wikipedia.