Organic cotton - What does it really mean?

What is it exactly? Is it better? For whom? What is required for cotton to be called organic? ImseVimse helps you figure it out!

PESTICIDES & EMISSIONS
Cotton accounts for a very small proportion (about 2.5%) of everything grown on earth, and yet cotton crops are the cause of as much as 25% of all pesticide emissions targeting insects. Organic cotton is less than one percent of total cotton production. Chemical pesticides are harmful to animal and plant life and also to people who handle them. It also seeps into drinking water and poisons the soil.

ORGANIC GROWING
To call the cotton organic, it must be grown without the use of any chemical pesticides or artificial fertilisers.
To prevent soil depletion, the farmer should alternate between different crops from one year to the next. This makes the soil more fertile and decreases the risk of insect damage. The soil on which the cotton is grown also has to have been free of chemicals for at least three years.

Organic farming may result in lower yields and requires more work. It's good to consider this when comparing prices and wondering why there is a difference between the price of organic cotton and cotton grown with chemical fertilisers and pesticides. Another concern with cotton is that it unfortunately requires huge amounts of water to grow, both organic and pesticide-grown cotton. There are instances where lakes have almost disappeared due to the irrigation of cotton fields.

CONTROL UNION CERTIFICATION
Our cotton comes from suppliers who are all inspected and certified according to the 'Control Union Certification'.
Control Union Certification is an organisation that monitors the criteria for organic production according to two established programmes; GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and 'Organic Exchange Certification'.

IN ORDER FOR THE COTTON TO BE CLASSIFIED AS ORGANIC:

It has to be grown without chemical pesticides and artificial fertilisers.
The soil used to grow the cotton must have been free of chemicals for at least three years.
The cultivation has to be varied with other crops.
Organic cotton must be certified to be called organic.
Read more about our environmental work here.

Here you can find information about our certifications.

Resource and inspiration: Swedish consumers - Conscious style