GOTS certified Organic Cotton
What is Cotton?
Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) is a soft fibre that grows in a boll around the seeds of cotton plants. The plant is a shrub native to the Americas, Africa, and India. The fibre is spun into yarn or thread and used to make a soft textile.
Why is GOTS better?
We only use GOTS certified organic cotton at Bedstraw and Madder
This is because it is a healthier option for your body and a more sustainable option for the environment.
Conventional cotton uses more pesticides than any other crop in the world with an estimated 25% of the world’s insecticides and 25% of the worlds pesticides used.
In the US it has been shown that pesticides unintentially kill 67 million birds a year.
By avoiding these chemicals farmers can also mitigate against climate change by building soil fertility that locks CO2 into the soil.
Farmer Health
There is a farmer suicide in India every 30 minutes due to the cost of the heavy use of pesticides and fertilizers on both yield and their bank balance. They are also often heavily poisoned by these chemicals they are using causing serious health issues.
It is not GM
Thankfully GM is banned in organic farming systems, while but unfortunately a significant amount of conventional cotton is genetically modified.
We know GM poses a great potential risk to human health and wildlife.
Restriction of chemicals and residues
GOTS monitors the chemicals used in processing of textiles in order to make sure they meet strict requirements on toxicity and biodegradability. Final products are restricted in the amount of allergenic, carcinogenic or toxic chemical residues. Residues like these can cause skin irritations and allergies.
In vast contrast, manufacturers of non organic cotton uses tens of thousands of highly toxic chemicals, many of which are classified as hazardous by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Cotton Resources:
https://oecotextiles.wordpress.com/tag/carbon-footprint/
https://www.permaculture.co.uk/articles/sustainable-fashion-organic-cotton
Facts:
Cotton needs 20k litres of water per kg to grow
To produce just 1 tonne takes 1 tonne of oil, 7 tonnes of greenhouse gasses and 100 tonnes of water