Ethical Clothing

Organic and ethical clothing may conjure up images of tie-dye t-shirts, yoga pants and long hair but luckily this is no longer the case and for those of us trying to lead a greener lifestyle it is an area we need to give some serious consideration to. As with other organic products the additional cost can put some people off, even those of us with the best intentions.

The feel good factor of buying something ethical and organic rarely comes close to the buzz of finding a bargain. But you needn’t have to spend the earth to help save it; all it takes is some prior knowledge to help you make the right decisions because, after all, we choose how and where we spend our money. Alternatively, if you’re seduced by designer labels but wish to make ethical purchases, then you could look at brands such as Ciel.

Green living is a very popular topic at the moment; there is great talk and debate in the media about ways in which we can live more ethically and conscientiously. We are encouraged more and more to recycle our waste, buy fair trade or organic and locally sourced produce and the term ‘carbon footprint’ has become widely used as people are becoming aware of the energy expenditures and environmental impact of their lifestyles.

As we become more environmentally conscious we also need to start becoming more socially conscious as well.

The cotton industry is one of the biggest causes of both environmental and social pollution in the world today and yet it is also one of the most overlooked when it comes to greener living. We all know of the horrors of cheap labour used in the production of low-cost, disposable clothing but the environmental impact is something else that we need to be taking into consideration.

Chemicals

The cotton industry is the world’s second largest user of agricultural pesticides; many of these contain chemicals that are classified as carcinogenic and cause illness and death to thousands of agricultural workers a year as well as poisoning rivers and polluting ground waters. It can take as much as 3kg of chemicals to produce just 1 kg of cotton.

The harvesting process isn’t much better with chemicals, desiccants and active ingredients such as thidiazuron, pyraflufen ethyl, carfentrazon, dimethipin, paraquat, glyphosate and ethephon used to defoliate and accelerate maturity of the cotton plants. It should be noted that most of these chemicals are removed during the washing and manufacturing process but only to be replaced with dyes and other toxic additions.

Potentially harmful chemicals are even used on the finished product. That smell we associate with new, store-fresh clothing is usually the smell of formaldehyde a chemical that has been bonded to the fabric to give a wrinkle free finish. This chemical irritant is not only bad for the environment but it has also been linked with diseases, health problems and rising cases of chemical sensitivities in adults and children. This is something to keep in mind especially when buying clothes for young children and babies. If that still doesn’t put you off formaldehyde is the solution used to preserve the dead cows and shark used in Damien Hurst’s art works; not really something you want next to your skin day after day now is it!

Cost

The cost of organic and ethical clothing is probably the factor preventing most people from making the switch. Why should we pay £24.99 for an organic cotton t-shirt when a similar non-organic version is available for £5.99 on the high street? Some people simply cannot afford to make the switch but those of us who can should take it into serious consideration because as sales of ethical clothing grow prices will eventually begin to come down and the range of items and styles available will increase.

A main factor is that with the buying power of the large companies and the use of over seas labour most of us have forgotten the true value of many things that we have come to take for granted. For instance the £5.99 it costs to buy a t-shirt on the high street is roughly the average wage for one hours work in the UK. It seems crazy to think that the same £5.99 covers the cost of the seeds, chemicals, packaging and fuel while ensuring that everyone involved in the farming, manufacturing and distribution processes are fairly paid whilst still leaving room for profit.

Conventional clothing’s prices are so low because the industry has become used to using chemical farming methods and cheap labour, both of which are not good for our natural and social environments. It is the avoidance of these practices that is the major factor in the perceived high cost of organic and ethical clothing. As organic cotton farming doesn’t use the genetically modified seeds, toxic fertilizers and pesticides of the conventional cotton industry it means lower yield crops that are more labour intensive and therefore more expensive to harvest. But, perhaps most importantly it is the fair payment and treatment of workers that has the biggest impact on the overall cost. Sweatshop style cheap labour should have no place in our society as it keeps people in poverty and exploits them for our benefit.

A good thing to try and remember when wrestling with the prospect of paying more for an organic item of clothing is that we buy organic for our environments health and that we wear organic for our own health.

Questions to ask

As consumers we should take it upon ourselves to ask questions of the companies that provide our clothing. For instance common questions we should all start to ask are:

Can the company guarantee that its clothes are produced under humane conditions? And if so can they provide information on factories, wages and working conditions?

Does the company take into account worker’s rights, social justice and environmental issues?

Does the company sell fair-trade or organic clothing? If not, when do they plan to change this and if not why not?

There are also a few things we can do ourselves to reduce our personal impact on the industry.

When buying clothes try to buy good-quality, timeless clothing. Try to see each purchase as a long-term investment rather than a throw away, one-season item. As the old saying goes ‘buy cheap, buy twice’.

Recycle your clothes rather than throw them out. Charity shops are an obvious choice but there are now recycling bins for clothes too. Try to buy from charity shops as well, pop in on your way to the shops and you may be surprised at what you can find.

Rather than throw out and replace damaged clothing try to get it mended, no one darns socks any more and it is a habit we should get back into.