Top Ten Reasons to Buy Organic Clothing and Bedding

1. You avoid contact with synthetic chemical surface treatments.
A switch to an organic mattress and organic bedding will instantly reduce your exposure by about one third – or whatever proportion of the day you spend in bed. One of the most common fire retardants used on mattresses – boric acid – is also used to kill rats!

2. You support organic farming.
By choosing organic clothing, you divert your disposable income towards supporting organic agriculture, which will encourage more farmers to employ environmentally friendly farming methods.

3. You support ethical and safe working practices.
Farmers working on organic farms are exposed to fewer chemicals. Each year, an estimated 60 million pounds of organophosphate pesticides are applied to U.S. agricultural crops and an additional 17 million pounds are used per year for non-agricultural uses, such as in household pest control products and lawn and garden sprays.

4. You support the use of natural colour and natural dyed fabrics.
Dyeing fabrics and yarns consumes a great deal of energy and produces large quantities of toxic waste. Natural-grown colours remove this processing stage altogether, while natural dyes are generally much less polluting than synthetics.

5. You support fair and ethical trade practices.
There is a strong and growing link between organic and ethical practices among groweres, manufacturers and retailers. Soil Association organic textiles standards now contain the most comprehensive requirements for safe working practices and fair trade.

6. You reduce the allergens present in the environment.
By choosing chemical-free, organic fabrics, you help to reduce the background level of potentially allergenic chemical compounds. A recent U S National Academy of Sciences study suggested that one in four developmental and behavioural problems in children may be linked to genetic and environmental factors, including exposure to lead, mercury and organophosphate pesticides.

7. You save on toxic waste.
Organic fabrics can be composted safely, without contributing to toxins in the soil.

8. You support biodiversity.
Organic farming aids biodiversity at every level of the food chain, by using fewer pesticides and fertilisers and by adopting wildlife-friendly habitat management techniques.

9. You save energy.
Conventional farming is a huge consumer of non-renewable fossil fuels. Organic farms tend to use less energy, instead focusing on careful ecological management and natural balances to solve pest problems.

10. You can be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.
What you wear says something about you, even if it doesn't have a slogan printed on it!

Phil Chandler
www.greenfibres.com
July 2006
25 July 2006 15:11:02

How to get a chemical-free night's sleep

If you are among the growing number of people whose lives are made almost intolerable by chemical sensitivities, changing to an organic mattress and organic bedding may be the answer to getting a good night's sleep.

Even if you are not especially intolerant of the chemicals used in the manufacture of conventional cotton, polyurethane foams and adhesives, but are concerned about what they may be doing to you over time, a switch to an organic mattress and organic bedding will instantly reduce your exposure by about one third – or whatever proportion of the day you spend in bed.

One of the highest potential chemical pollutant risks may come not so much from your conventional mattress itself as the surface treatment often applied to make it fire-proof. One of the most common fire retardants – boric acid – is also used to kill rats.i

Despite fierce opposition from doctors and health campaigners, legislation has recently been passed in the USA to make flame-proofing compulsory on all new mattresses soldii. This means that Americans now need a doctor's prescription to buy a mattress that does not contain toxic and potentially carcinogenic chemicals!

In Canada, researchers are calling for a ban on flame-retardant chemicals that have been found in the breast milk of Inuit womeniii. Because of the patterns of atmospheric circulation, these pollutants tend to settle in cold regions, where they get into the food chain and become concentrated in fatty tissues.

The UK is currently the only European countryiv to require specific flame-testing of furniture fillings and we use around 1500 tonnes of bromine-based chemical fire retardants each year. Bromine is a naturally-occurring substance, which has a range of toxic effects. The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention comments:

“No specific antidote exists for bromine poisoning... The most important thing is for people to remove themselves from the exposure site and seek medical treatment as soon as possible.”v

So far, research into the long-term effects of such chemicals seems woefully inadequate. One of the UK Department of Trade and Industry's own publications states:

“It is not possible with the presently available information to make quantitative estimates of the exposures by people using consumer products containing flame retardants. There is limited recent work in this area (e.g. CPSC 1997, 1998b) and there is the need for further work. ”vi

Despite this admission, the report continues:

“The limited work available and the application of basic judgement (in the absence of other guidance) suggests that exposures to flame retardants in consumer products are unlikely to be greater than a few μg/kg-bodyweight/day. Therefore we can conclude that at the low levels of exposure envisaged flame retardants of low toxic potency are unlikely to have adverse toxicological effects.”

Do you feel safer now?

All organic bedding products sold by Greenfibres use natural materials derived from organic farming methods, thus avoiding all toxic fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides. Not only does this offer great benefits to the farmers and the environment, but also enables you to choose products made according to strict organic certification standards, which will be inherently safer for you and your family.

Needless to say, we use no fire-retardants..

- ### -

P J Chandler
www.greenfibres.com
mail@greenfibres.com
01803 868001


Further information

http://www.lifekind.com/catalog/chemical_glossary.php A useful chemical glossary.

http://www.peopleforcleanbeds.org/ Campaigning site with a lot of information about toxins and the US regulations on flame-proofing mattresses.

http://www.chemicalfree.co.uk An excellent site for UK readers with chemical intolerances.

Underwear First To Get Organic Approval

A range of underwear supplied by mail order retailer Greenfibres is the first in the UK to be given the stamp of Organic approval by the Soil Association. This is the first step towards full UK Organic Certification for the pioneering company, about to celebrate its 10th anniversary. Other Greenfibres products to be Soil Association certified for the first time include a range of organic cotton towels and a selection of socks. While most people have some idea of the reasons why organic food might be better for us and the environment, the idea of buying organic clothes is not one that may occur to many of us. Gabriela Lana, co-director of Greenfibres, says, "The textiles industry causes a great deal of pollution and has rather dubious working practices. Organic clothing is just one more step towards living an ethical and eco-friendly life." The textile industry is indeed a major source of pollution, using about one quarter of the pesticides applied to crops worldwide. Over 8,000 chemicals are used to turn raw fibres into clothes, towels, bedding and other household goods. Some of these (such as organophosphates, pyrethroids, carbamates and organochlorines) have been associated with cancer, birth defects, and hormonal disruption. Reproductive effects have also been noted, including male fish developing female characteristics. To grow the cotton for one T-shirt, around 150 grams of pesticides and fertiliser are used. Organic textiles are derived from crops grown without chemicals, using eco-friendly methods. No toxic chemicals are used in their manufacture and surface dressings are either absent or eco-friendly. All Greenfibres Organic products are certified by one of the major European agencies, which include Bioland (Germany), Demeter (Germany) and SKAL (Netherlands), and only recently has it become possible to certify organic textiles in the UK. - ### - NOTES 1. William Lana, co-director of Greenfibres, is chair of the Soil Association's Textiles Standards Committee 2. William and Gabriela Lana started Greenfibres from their sitting room in 1996. Turnover this year is expected to exceed £1M ADDITIONAL INFORMATION About Soil Association Organic Textiles Standards (from SA web site) The standards cover the processing and manufacture of all natural fibres including leather and skins. The manufacturing of organic textiles uses methods that ensure minimal damage to humans and the environment. All inputs must be assessed on their biodegradability and their toxicity to fish, algae and water fleas. In addition, inputs are not allowed if it is suspected, or proven, that the chemicals or processes used can cause cancer, birth defects or changes to reproductive organs. Suspected or proven allergens are also banned. The conditions under which organic fibres can be grown are covered in existing organic standards. The use of herbicides is prohibited and artificial pesticides are severely restricted. All animals will be reared to organic standards and no genetically modified (GM) inputs are allowed. Other organisations certifying organic textiles A number of other organisations currently certify organic textiles, but the Soil Association is the first UK certifier to do so. Other labels you might see on textiles include KRAV (Sweden), Demeter (Germany), IVN - International Association of Natural Textile Manufacturers (Germany), SKAL (Holland). There are other labels such as Agrocel (India) which are trade organisations as opposed to independent certifiers. In developing our standards we reviewed all those currently available to ensure we captured the best and most appropriate standards from elsewhere. In particular we worked within the criteria laid down by IFOAM regarding toxicity (to humans and wildlife) and biodegradability when deciding which chemicals and processes are acceptable. IFOAM is the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements – an international umbrella organisation for organic standards. The Soil Association is the only UK certifier that is accredited by IFOAM. For a garment to be labelled organic by the Soil Association, raw materials must contain at least 95% organic materials – excluding accessories such as buttons and zips. The remaining 5% can be made up of a limited range of non-organic fibres if insufficient organic material is available. If an item contains 70% - 94% organic materials by weight, it must be labelled “made with xx% organic materials.” QUOTES From Soil Association web site: "According to the WHO, 20,000 deaths occur in developing countries each year from poisoning by agricultural pesticides used on crops, of which many, due to their relative toxicity, can be attributed to cotton. In Benin in West Africa, 24 people died as a result of poisoning from cotton pesticides in 2000 – this included 11 children under the age of 10." RESOURCES Greenfibres - www.greenfibres.com 99 High Street, Totnes, Devon TQ9 5PF 01803 868001 mail@greenfibres.com Soil Association - http://www.soilassociation.org/ IFOAM - http://www.ifoam.org/ (IFOAM = International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements – an international umbrella organisation for organic standards. The Soil Association is the only UK certifier accredited by IFOAM.) SKAL - http://www.skal.com/ Bioland - http://www.bioland.de/bioland/english.html Demeter - http://www.demeter.net/ (biodynamic certification)

25 April 2006 10:04:38

Author/source: Phil Chandler