Posted on Categories Sustainable LivingTags , , , ,

Cotton on: the staggering potential of switching to organic clothes

Rebecca Smithers, THE GUARDIAN

ost Britons underestimate the full environmental impact of cotton, thinking it takes only 314 litres of water to make a cotton T-shirt – which is only 12% of the true figure of 2,700 litres, according to a new report out today.

Yet buying a certified organic cotton T-shirt rather than an ordinary one would save a staggering 2,457 litres of water – enough for one person to drink eight glasses of water a day for three and a half years.

Consumers are being urged to save water in the supply chain by buying organic cotton T-shirts in a new study from the Soil Association – the trade body that licenses organic products and promotes organic farming, as well as the environmental charity Hubbub.

Two in five Britons also said that while they care about the environment, it has not occurred to them that the manufacture of their clothing might have a negative impact on the planet, according to the new research.

Within the fashion industry, more than half of garments sold in the UK are made from cotton, meaning that switching conventional cotton to more sustainable cotton alternatives continues to present one of the biggest opportunities for retailers to reduce their environmental impact.

Cotton is a notoriously thirsty crop as detailed in the report. Growing cotton accounts for 69% of the water footprint of textile fibre production; just one kilogram of cotton takes as much as 10,000-20,000 litres of water to produce.

The World Economic Forum has identified water scarcity as one of the top 10 global risks to society over the next 10 years, yet the bulk of cotton is grown in countries that are already facing severe water stress.

However, growing cotton organically uses significantly less (up to 91%) water than conventional cotton, the report says. In addition, conventional cotton uses approximately 16% of the world’s insecticides and 7% of pesticides.

Read more at https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2019/oct/01/cotton-on-the-staggering-potential-of-switching-to-organic-clothes

Posted on Categories Agriculture/Food SystemTags , , ,

Farmers and environmentalists work hard to save Gravensteins

Daniel Mueller, SONOMA MAGAZINE

Cider as savior?

The Gravenstein, derived from Europe and named after a Danish castle, transformed west Sonoma County into one of the world’s premier apple growing regions. Its namesake highway (CA-116) now runs through what remains of Sonoma’s apple country, north of Sebastopol.

In recent years, however, this area has quietly become a destination for cider lovers, with some 10 cideries and a growing numbers of taprooms.

Paula Shatkin and her husband were driving along Sonoma County’s scenic back roads when she first noticed something was amiss.

“We saw apple orchards in bloom just being chopped down, willy-nilly, everywhere,” said Shatkin.

That was 18 years ago, right when vineyards were booming and apple farmers were having trouble making ends meet. The iconic Gravenstein had transformed west Sonoma County into one of the world’s premier apple growing regions. In the booming 1940s, nearly 15,000 acres in the county were planted with apple trees. By 2016, that number had fallen to about 2,200 acres.

“Whole orchards were being chopped down and made into vineyards, without a lot of work being done to make sure they weren’t damaging the ecosystem,” said Shatkin. “We were losing our biodiversity.”

Shatkin, a social worker, took action. She rallied local growers, preservationists and environmental advocates to create a local chapter of the Slow Food movement, an international effort to preserve local cuisines and promote biodiversity. “Save the Gravenstein” became a popular rallying cry on bumper stickers and store windows in west Sonoma County.

Shatkin’s Slow Food Russian River was soon on a mission to get more people excited about local apples. Shops in Sebastopol were handing out free, locally grown apples. Banners in town announced “The Gravensteins Are Coming” in July and “The Gravensteins Are Here” in August. The group acquired an apple press and invited residents to press juice at the Luther Burbank farm in Sebastopol.

“We have made a huge difference in the demand for Gravensteins at this point, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t still losing apple acreage to vines, unfortunately,” said Shatkin. “But all these years one of our goals has been to help farmers raise the price-point of the apples so that they could maybe make a living growing apples.”

Read more at https://www.sonomamag.com/for-the-love-of-apples-sonoma-county-farmers-and-environmentalists-work-hard-to-save-their-favorite-fruit