Challenges
Organic cotton is produced based on the principles of organic agriculture. This tends to be better than conventional, as it does not use pesticides and pesticides– which reduces the damage caused to the soil, to the environment and to the human being.
Thus, there is a lot of criticism of conventional agriculture for providing foods that can be harmful to health., but what about the agricultural products that are used to make clothes, like cotton? It may not be edible (cotton candy doesn't count; that's just sugar) but even so, conventional-type planting can cause damage.. That's why there is an alternative, the organic cotton.
But what is organic cotton? What are its advantages and benefits? See below for some important questions about this alternative cotton.
Which is?
Organic cotton cultivation is a solution to reduce environmental impact. A study shows that, compared to conventional cotton cultivation, there are big reductions in: Water consumption, gas emission, acidification, eutrophication and primary energy demand. Conclusion: the production of organic cotton proved to be 46% less exciting to global warming than conventional cotton.
Not to mention that the entire organic sector is inspected for its certificate. even in Brazil, this certification is carried out by an agency certified by theInternational Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM; in Portuguese, International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements).
Advantages over conventional
Growing organic cotton preserves the health of the soil thanks to the use of the crop rotation system(alternate the same space with another species so that soil nutrients do not deplete), discarding the need for synthetic fertilizers – which explains its lower water consumption.
There is no use of pesticides, as pests are fought with the insertion of beneficial predatory species or with another type of plant that is more attractive to these insects.
With all this, more people are needed to work, creating more jobs and better training workers. The model has a fairer relationship between all workers who participate in production (fair trade) compared to the common production that, even today and in many places around the world, makes use of semi-slave labor.
No brazil
Production and marketing not only of cotton, but of organic agriculture as a whole, are still small in the country, but little by little the process is gaining ground in the Brazilian market. E, as in any other type of ecological planting in the world, there are economic and environmental benefits, also keeping the work ethic..
it is known that, No brazil, organic farming tends to be a family business, often from small producers who attended higher education (not that this is strictly necessary; it's just a feature that stood out in this medium).
Most of the national organic cotton agriculture is found in the Brazilian Northeast, in the semiarid region. And it's in Campina Grande (PB) that she has greater prominence because of her great development.
Conscious consumption
There are already textile industries changing their manufacturing processes and using ecologically correct raw materials as one of the ways to reduce pollution. in the fashion industry, there are many brands that have already adhered to the use of this sustainable material in their pieces.
It is important that industries, to maintain this sustainable path, don't just use organic cotton, as well as increasingly seeking other alternatives that dispense with the use of chemicals during the weaving process.
When it comes to common cotton, both early in the weaving process, when washing the fibers, how much in the dyeing process, there is the introduction of solid waste that is later released and, if the proper security measures are not taken, can be harmful to health (cause allergies or even skin cancer) and further pollute the environment. And these substances will keep coming out with every wash you do of your clothes or if you start to sweat or get rained., it can even irritate your skin. If it can irritate an adult's skin, imagine a child? And a baby's then, that has skin that is practically five times thinner than an adult's.?! A newborn's body can absorb these toxins much easier..
Organic clothing is toxin-free – that is, hypoallergenic -, not harming sensitive skin. It's much more suitable (it is logical) dressing a baby in clothing made from organic cotton and avoiding contact with the toxins that were used to grow regular cotton.
Production
In the organic tissue production process, only natural dyes are applied for dyeing. but what are they? The color is sought from natural pigments from tree bark, leaves and roots, being able to give more vivid tones to the garments produced. This practice has been increasingly developed so that there are more color options. However, you need to keep an eye on it, because it could be that the cotton is organic, but the color may originate from some chemical substance; to stay on the ecological path, industries must use paints without heavy metals on any clothing, be jeans, dresses, trousers, skirts, shirts or t-shirts – always pay attention to the certification.
The water used in industries during production is reused and treated. This reduces water waste and environmental pollution.
When buying ordinary cotton clothes, take into account how much water and energy have already been used for your cultivation and how much more you will spend to wash your clothes. Also think if the clothes are imported; even if it's from a neighboring country, there is a large emission of gases just to transport these parts. There is no point in encouraging global warming if you have an alternative product. Choosing organic cotton is not just a form of sustainable consumption, but also health.
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