The safest option for our children
Our kids' skin is up to 20-30% thinner than ours, and therefore less resilient than adult skin. External irritants penetrate infant skin more easily. It is up to us to make sure that none of the chemical that are widely used in the conventional clothing industry (chlorine bleaches, formaldehyde, silicone based softeners, optical whiteners, azo dyes, petroleum scours, silicon waxes, etc.) touches their skin.
No harmful chemicals are used to grow organic certified cotton or to produce certified organic cotton fibers.
Growers of certified organic cotton must meet a whole series of very strict criteria to qualify as organic.
Please make sure that the clothing you buy is organic certified. Organic cotton that is not certified is a marketing tool, the fibers used may not be organic at all.
The safest option for our planet Earth
Conventional cotton attracts a wide range of insects that are treated with pesticides. As a result, cotton farming is one of the largest pesticide dependent crops in the world, using an overwhelming 25% of the world’s pesticides each year. Fungicides and chemical loaded synthetic fertilizers are also used widely with an immeasurable negative effect on the environment. Conventional cotton fabric is then processed with Chlorine bleach to whiten the cotton.
The philosophy behind organic farming is balance.
Organic fibers are grown without the use of pesticides or chemical fertilizers. The soil must have been chemical-free for at least the last three years. Organic matter is used as fertilizer. Beneficial insects are used to get rid of harmful insects that threaten plants. Organic cotton production is based on a system of farming that maintains and regenerates soil fertility without the persistent use of chemicals, toxins, pesticides, fertilizers or GM seeds or sprays. Later safe Peroxide is used to whiten the fibers.
The best socially conscious option
The WHO reports three million pesticide poisonings per year and 20,000 unintentional deaths, largely among the rural poor in the third world
20,000 people die every year from accidental pesticide poisoning in conventional cotton agriculture (World Health Organisation). 1,000,000 people a year suffer from long-term pesticide poisoning (Pesticide Action Network). 200,000 cotton farmers commit suicide annually due to spiralling debts incurred from buying pesticides and GMO seeds.
This allows them to feed, clothe, educate and provide healthcare for their children.