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Organic cotton is not new but it is limited in quantity. However, the volume of interest and new and constant inquiry would lead someone to believe otherwise. The apparent “organic” growth of interest in organic cotton has been tremendous over the last few years. The term “organic” has become a favorite marketing phrase with today’s population with ever growing concerns about energy, pollution and global warming. Corporations are championing the term “organic” and rolling it into their mission statements and business models. Unfortunately, along with the term “organic” is coming along some confusion as the term “sustainability” is often being used in conjunction with or interchangeably with “organic”. This is a dangerous and confusing premise for the consumer as the terms “sustainability” and “organic” are not entirely mutually inclusive. The prospect of the world being able to grow the entire world’s cotton organically is not sustainable if we expect to be able to clothe the world’s population. However, that is not stopping a growing number of designers, brands and retailers from investigating and trying to set up new organic programs. There needs to be a balance between organic and sustainable cotton production. The U.S. has made tremendous investments and advances in producing sustainable agriculture in ensuring fertile soils, healthy crops, conscientious farming practices while maximizing production.
The process of growing cotton organically is not as simple as just making a decision to make the change. First of all, it takes three years to certify agricultural land as an organic field by an organic certification organization. Secondly, there are significant differences between growing cotton conventionally and organically. Besides the obvious differences in the chemicals (herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers) that are applied or not applied in each specific case, organically grown cotton typically does not yield as well and in many instances only produces about half the amount of cotton fiber as the same size field would if it were being grown conventionally. Other significant differences arise as well such as the requirement of additional labor crews to manage the fields and additional weather risk due to a longer growing season as most growers wait for the first freeze to assist with the defoliation prior to picking of the cotton.
Organic cotton poses interesting questions in terms of its use as a fiber in the fashion and home textile industries. Most designers are not known for simply cutting a piece of unfinished fabric and making it look good. Dyes, printing and various finishing treatments yield fabrics that work into a designer’s idea of fashion and style. This ultimately makes it a lot more difficult for incorporation of an unfinished organic cotton fabric into today’s cutting edge fashion scene. However, for some, the fact that organic cotton is used and the belief in the benefits of growing agriculture in that manner in itself is enough of a benefit. There are processes that can be used to work with organic cotton fabrics to maintain their organic status. But, to date, they do not yet yield the same results as fabrics that are subjected to conventional finishing and treatments.
As noted earlier, organic cotton production is limited as prices for organic cotton can be significantly more expensive than its conventionally grown counterpart. Growers in the U.S. are typically also not willing to plant the cotton before having a signed contract for the purchase of the production from the planted acres. With higher costs of production and less yield, a farmer is not willing to invest in growing an organic crop to only receive regular crop prices and with less production. This is one of the issues that inhibit growth of organic cotton as the designers, brands and retailers are ready to begin a program as soon as the idea arises. But with the current limited supplies, usually all the organic cotton is already spoken for. So the typical response to new inquiries is that they could start their program 18 months out when there is a new crop if they commit and contract today and assuming that there is available organic farm land available. Other organic crops often yield better economic returns to the organic farmer than a cotton crop and with less risk, which also limits cotton acreage on the organically certified soils. Until there is enough of an established marketplace and consistent demand for organic cotton by a larger segment of the consumers, competition will be high for those buyers wanting to include “organic” in their new product lines.
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Supima promotes American Pima cotton in the U.S. and abroad and licenses the name and trademark worldwide to textile/ apparel manufacturers and retailers. Supima's headquarters are in Phoenix, and they have their offices in New York and Fresno, California. |
Conclusion
Organic cotton is grown in several countries, including India, U.S.A., Turkey, Peru, Egypt, Israel and Uganda. However, this is only a very small percentage of the total cotton production in the world.
It is slowly and gradually being accepted by the general public all over the world. In spite of this, it still has a long way to go. However, the future for this trend does seem bright.
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