Whilst it may be hard to tell the difference between the finished product, there are in fact a number of differences between cotton and organic cotton. Importantly, organic cotton has a smaller environmental impact during production.
Across our range we only use organic cotton, but why do we use this material, and what are the differences between organic and standard cotton?
The main difference between organic cotton and cotton is the environmental impact that growing the crop has. Organic cotton has a number of benefits to standard. Here are the main differences between the two:
- Organic cotton uses around 70% less water during production than standard. This has a number of environmental benefits, such as less irrigation and diverting of water.
- No artificial fertilisers are used in growing organic cotton. This has plenty of benefits for both the local and wider environment. It prevents runoff into local waterways, impact on local wildlife and also prevents excessive CO2 being released from production of the fertiliser.
- No pesticides are used in organic production. Cotton is responsible for 16% of the worlds usage, and pesticides are responsible for around 16,000 deaths each year. Organic cotton doesn't contribute to this in any way.
- Organic cotton is much kinder to the soil it is grown in. When used with crop rotation and land management, the planet and local economy both become much stronger.
- Organic is better for the workers. Avoiding harmful pesticides and fertilisers has obvious benefits for the farmers and factory workers health. All of our organic cotton is GOTS certified as well, meaning all workers are covered by the International Labour Organisation conventions. These include minimum wages, healthy working hours, prevention of child labour, freedom of association, no discrimination, prevention of harsh or inhumane treatment and more.
- And just to top it off, organic cotton feels much softer against the skin.
It's therefore a no brainer to go for organic cotton. It's kinder to you, the workers and the planet.
Check out our range of ethical and sustainable items here.
There's plenty of resources online that discuss organic cotton, but a good place to start is the soil association here.