What is organic cotton?
An excellent question! All cotton clothing, from that t-shirt you’re wearing to your favourite pair of jeans, started out from a tiny seed planted in the earth. With the right combination of sunlight, water, air and love, that seed can sprout and grow into a healthy cotton crop. Just like organic fruit and vegetables, organic cotton is made without any harmful pesticides or chemical fertilizers, which is better for our environment, our farmers and our skin.
Why choose organic?
Organic cotton supports sustainable farming practices by forgoing the use of chemicals or genetically modified seeds, which in turn promotes happy, healthy soil, waterways and wildlife.
In many cases, cotton is grown and processed using many nasty chemicals, such as pesticides and synthetic fertilizers. These substances are easily absorbed into the skin and lungs of farmers and workers, and can cause a number of serious illnesses. According to the World Health Organisation, over 1-million children are exposed to harmful pesticides because they are employed to help with cotton pest management. And this is only in Egypt.
The good news is that organic cotton production has increased by 152% during the 2007–2008 crop year, according to the Organic Cotton Farm and Fiber Report 2008 released by Organic Exchange. This is fantastic news and largely due to you, the consumer, demanding organic products. Together we can all help to maintain our planet for future generations.
The good bits
There are lots of great benefits to choosing organic cotton garments for you and your kids:
- Comfort, wellbeing and quality – Organic cotton feels, looks and smells great! There are no chemicals to irritate the skin or compromise the softness and durability of the natural fibres. This reduces the risk of allergies developing in babies and children and means softer, longer-living garments.
- Environmentally safe – By choosing organic cotton, you are taking a step towards a greener and more sustainable environment for you and your children.
- GM free – Organic cotton does not use any genetically modified seed, as opposed to approximately 70% of Australian conventional cotton growing.
- Fair trade – Mulberry Tree Organic works with brands that provide a better deal for our farmers, manufacturers and their workers. Fair trade means looking after our farmers and manufacturers by promoting better working conditions, fair wages and living conditions. Respect!
Need more reason? Take a look at Mulberry Tree Organic’s beautiful online catalogue!