Why Organic Cotton?

Cotton surrounds us – our clothing, bed sheets, towels, all have cotton. What you put on your body can be as important as what you put in your body. Various harsh chemicals are used on conventionally grown cotton, including: pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, defoliants, and synthetic fertilizers. To complete the production process chlorine bleach, formaldehyde, and high-impact dyes are used. Washing cotton materials does not remove all of these chemicals, so you are likely being exposed to these harsh chemicals everyday without realizing it.

Cotton producers around the world use nearly $2.6 billion worth of pesticides – more than 25% of the world’s pesticides each year. According to the Sustainable Cotton Project, one-fourth of a pound of pesticide and other agricultural chemicals are used to produce cotton for one t-shirt. Many of these chemicals are known carcinogens.

Not only is the process of producing conventional cotton an impact on your health, it takes a significant toll on the environment. Our behavior now will impact the world our grandchildren will live in. Should we continue to use and abuse the planet selfishly? Our purchase decisions can have a tremendous impact on the environment. As a society, by creating a market for cotton produced this way, we are in a way adding to the negative impact on the environment.

There are so many products out there that we use every single day. If you replaced even half of these products with the healthier, organic alternative the next time you went shopping – imagine what kind of impact you could have on the planet. Natural toothpaste recycled plastic toothbrushes, chemical-free mouthwash and deodorant, organic cotton shirts, chemical-free cleaning products, biodegradable laundry detergent, natural cosmetic products, organic spices, etc. As more and more people follow this path of a healthier lifestyle, we can change the way businesses produce personal care products all over the world. The more we create demand for the healthier alternatives, the more big businesses will switch to meet that demand. As they do so, the whole planet benefits.

By purchasing organic cotton, fewer pesticides will flow into our rivers, which eventually affect our own water supply. Fewer chemicals in the waters also affect the plants and animals in those areas, which could eventually end up on our own plates. By helping the environment we are not only helping future generations, we are also helping ourselves.