Organic CottonCreating awareness about all things organic and bio-dynamic

Here are 9 compelling reasons why you should be using organic cotton.

• Quality. The wide variety of chemicals used in the growing and processing of conventional cotton – some 82 of them – only serve to weaken the structure of the fibre and eventual fabric. Organic cotton is more durable.
• Comfort. Consumers consistently report that organic cotton products feel better against their skin. As any kinesiologist will confirm, organic cotton products resonate more harmoniously with the human body.
• Wellbeing. Chemicals are not good for us and are largely to blame for the escalation of degenerative diseases. They are absorbed through our skin and through our lungs, especially when body heat causes them to vaporize.
• Smells Better. Being absolutely pure and free of additive substances such as formaldehyde, commonly used in the “finishing” of conventional cotton, organic cotton has a delightful, natural aroma.
• Environmentally safe. Conventional cotton is disastrous for our environment, poisoning our soils and our waterways, consuming vast amounts of water, much of it needed to put out chemical sprays.
• Socially Responsible. Every time we purchase a cheap imported conventional cotton product, we support the mindless practices that helped produce it. Every time we purchase an organic product, we affirm conscious, life-enhancing practices – we are helping to build a better world.
• Fair Trade. It takes a lot of conscious, well intended effort to grow cotton organically. Around the world, the experience is that organic farmers care for their workers – and not poisoning them is a good start! We are tending to see whole communities turn away from chemicals and start to receive a fairer return for their product, which is now at a premium.
• Not G.M. About 70% of Australia’s cotton is now grown from genetically modified seed and this is a common experience, worldwide. Certified organic cotton is grown from seed that has not been modified.
• Higher Consciousness. Matter is energy and we absorb the consciousness with which the products we use are made. If you appreciate organic foods, you will love organic cotton.

• Of all insecticides used globally each year, the estimated amount used on traditional cotton: 25%.
• Five of the top nine pesticides used on cotton in the U.S. (cyanide, dicofol, naled, propargite, and trifluralin) are KNOWN cancer-causing chemicals. All nine are classified by the U.S. EPA as Category I and II— the most dangerous chemicals.
• In the U.S. today, it takes approximately 8-10 years, and $100 million to develop a new pesticide for use on cotton. It takes approximately 5-6 years for weevils and other pests to develop an immunity to a new pesticide.
• 600,408 tons of herbicides, insecticides, fertilizers, fungicides, and other chemicals were used to produce  cotton in 1992 in the 6 largest cotton producing states. (Agricultural Chemical Usage, 1992 Field Crops Summary, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service)
• Number of pesticides presently on the market that were registered before being tested to determine if they caused cancer, birth defects or wildlife toxicity: 400.  (US EPA Pesticide Registration Progress Report, 1/93)
• Amount of time it takes to ban a pesticide in the U.S. using present procedures: 10 years. (US EPA Pesticide Registration Progress Report, 1/93)
• Number of active ingredients in pesticides found to cause cancer in animals or humans: 107.(After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• Of those active ingredients, the number still in use today: 83.(After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• Number of pesticides that are reproductive toxins according to the California E.P.A.: 15.  (After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• Most acutely toxic pesticide registered by the E.P.A.: aldicarb (frequently used on cotton). (After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• Number of states in which aldicarb has been detected in the groundwater: 16.  (After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• Percentage of all U.S. counties containing groundwater susceptible to contamination from agricultural pesticides and fertilizers: 46%. (After Silent Spring, NRDC, 6/93)
• The Sustainable Cotton Project estimates that the average acre of California cotton grown in 1995 received some 300 pounds of synthetic fertilizers or 1/3 pound of fertilizer to raise every pound of cotton. Synthetic fertilizers have been found to contaminate drinking wells in farm communities and pose other long-term threats to farm land.
• One of the commonly used pesticides on cotton throughout the world, endosulfan, leached from cotton fields into a creek in Lawrence County, Alabama during heavy rains in 1995. Within days 245,000 fish were killed over 16 mile stretch. 142,000 pounds of endosulfan were used in California in 1994.
• In California’s San Joaquin Valley, estimates are that less than 25% of a pesticide sprayed from a crop duster ever hits the crop. The remainder can drift for several miles, coming to rest on fruit and vegetable crops, and farm- workers. One year more than one hundred workers fell ill after a single incident of such drift onto an adjacent vineyard.
• In California, it has become illegal to feed the leaves, stems, and short fibers of cotton known as ‘gin trash’ to livestock, because of the concentrated levels of pesticide residue. Instead, this gin trash is used to make furniture, mattresses, tampons, swabs, and cotton balls. The average American woman will use 11,000 tampons or sanitary pads during her lifetime.
• The problems with clothing production don’t stop in the field. During the conversion of conventional cotton into clothing, numerous toxic chemicals are added at each stage— silicone waxes, harsh petroleum scours, softeners, heavy metals, flame and soil retardants, ammonia, and formaldehyde— to name just a few.

When produced with conventional agricultural practices, cotton generally requires the use of substantial amounts of fertilisers and pesticides.
Globally, cotton accounts for 11% of all pesticides used each year, even though the area of production is only 2.4% of the world’s arable land.

High consumption of agrochemicals
With regard to the subset of insecticides, cotton producers use 25% of all insecticides used each year. In developing countries, estimates suggest that half of the total pesticides used on all crops are applied to cotton.

Forty-six insecticides and acaricides (compounds used to control mites and ticks) comprise 90% of the total volume of all pesticides used on cotton. Five of these are classified as extremely hazardous, 8 as highly hazardous, and 20 are moderately hazardous (Soth 1999).

Risks of using highly toxic pesticides
The use of pesticides poses health risks to workers; to organisms in the soil; to migratory species such as insects, birds, and mammals; and to downstream freshwater species. Research on the cause of fish deaths in the United States showed that pesticides, even used with the proper application, harm freshwater ecosystems.

Serious water contamination from runoff
Endosulphan is a pesticide that is classified as highly toxic. In August 1995 endosulphan contaminated runoff from cotton fields in Alabama resulted in the death of more than 240,000 fish along a 25-kilometre stretch of river (PANUPS 1996). In another instance, gulls in Texas were killed 3 miles from cotton fields where parathion was sprayed when they ate insects that had been poisoned.

Effects on humans
Studies have estimated the human impact from pesticides used on cotton to be as high as 20,000 people killed and 3 million poisoned every year (IISD/WWF 1997). In addition to direct contamination in fields, people are also affected through water runoff, drift of sprayed mist, the use of empty pesticide containers for other purposes, and inadequate or illegal disposal of expired or unused pesticides (Banuri 1999).

The shift to chemical control of pests is relatively new, beginning after World War II. In the United States, for example, in 1950 cotton pests were controlled by agricultural management and tillage practices. Pest cycles were taken into consideration before planting and at harvesting. Crop rotations were used, sometimes unprofitably, to avoid insect infestations. Planting in lower densities also allowed producers to reduce the impact of pests.

Pesticides - perceived as cheaper alternative to other inputs
From the 1950s on, pesticides were seen as a cheaper alternative to the use of labour and machinery. Use peaked in the 1970s. By the late 1990s in California, an average of 9.1 kilograms (20 pounds) of pesticides (active ingredients only) were used each year per hectare of cotton production.

Aldicarb - frequently used, acutely toxic
This rate of usage has not changed in the past decade. The most acutely toxic pesticide registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is aldicarb (sold under the trade name Temik), which is frequently used on cotton. In fact, 85-95% of all aldicarb used in the United States is used on cotton. Aldicarb has been detected in the groundwater in 16 states (Monsanto 1999).

Pesticides make up by far the largest share of the agrochemicals used on cotton (67%). Herbicides make up about a quarter of all agrochemicals used, and fungicides a relatively small amount (5%). In many parts of the world the use of chemicals in cotton production is an even more recent phenomenon, but one rapidly increasing in scope.

Organic agriculture protects the health of people and the planet by reducing the overall exposure to toxic chemicals from synthetic pesticides that can end up in the ground, air, water and food supply, and that are associated with health consequences, from asthma to cancer. Because organic agriculture doesn’t use toxic and persistent pesticides, choosing organic products is an easy way to help protect yourself.

Acreage estimates for the 2006 U.S. cotton crop show approximately 5,971 acres of certified organic cotton were planted in the United States and in 2007, farmers planed 7,473 acres. Internationally, Turkey and the United States are the largest organic cotton producers.

Demand is being driven by apparel and textile companies that are expanding their 100% organic cotton program and developing programs that blend small percentages of organic cotton with their conventional cotton products.

Here are some reasons why organic cotton production is important to the long-term health of the planet.

• Cotton uses approximately 25% of the world’s insecticides and more than 10% of the pesticides (including herbicides, insecticides, and defoliants.). (Allan Woodburn)
• Approximately 10% of all pesticides sold for use in U. S. agriculture were applied to cotton in 1997, the most recent year for which such data is publicly available. (ACPA)
• Fifty-five million pounds of pesticides were sprayed on the 12.8 million acres of conventional cotton grown in the U.S. in 2003 (4.3 pounds/ acre), ranking cotton third behind corn and soybeans in total amount of pesticides sprayed. (USDA)
• Over 2.03 billion pounds of synthetic fertilizers were applied to conventional cotton in 2000 (142 pounds/acre), making cotton the fourth most heavily fertilized crop behind corn, winter wheat, and soybeans. (USDA)
• The Environmental Protection Agency considers seven of the top 15 pesticides used on cotton in 2000 in the United States as “possible,” “likely,” “probable,” or “known” human carcinogens (acephate, dichloropropene, diuron, fluometuron, pendimethalin, tribufos, and trifluralin). (EPA)
• In 1999, a work crew re-entered a cotton field about five hours after it was treated with tribufos and sodium chlorate (re-entry should have been prohibited for 24 hours). Seven workers subsequently sought medical treatment and five have had ongoing health problems. (California DPR)