About Organic Cotton
Using organic cotton is a conscious decision for your babies’ health as well as an investment for maximum comfort. Cotton is harvested for its intrinsic softness, excellent absorbency, and durability. You may know from your own experience it’s undeniably more comfortable to wear cotton than man-made fabrics. As for cotton vs. organic cotton, many people claim that organic cotton is remarkably softer on the skin than non-organic cotton. Organic cotton isn’t just softer to the touch, it contains zero chemicals. Making it a superior fabric for allergies and sensitive skin. It is an excellent absorbent material, yet is very breathable. Organic cotton diapers allow air to flow in and around your baby’s skin, reducing diaper rash and skin sensitivity. So aside from comfort and it’s health benefits what is the difference between organic cotton and non-organic cotton?
Cotton is the most heavily sprayed crop in the world. Let’s do the math. Cotton fibers account for over 50% of all clothing production worldwide. It is estimated that cotton farming uses 25% of the world’s insecticides and more than 10% of the pesticides including herbicides and defoliants. For every acre of conventional cotton grown 150 pounds of synthetic fertilizer is used. That averages to about 2 billion pounds of nitrogen-based fertilizer per crop.
In layman terms it takes 1/3 of a pound of chemical fertilizers to grow 1 pound of unbleached cotton. To make one cloth diaper it takes just under 1 pound of raw cotton .
If your baby is wearing non–organic cotton, they are being exposed to the insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, defoliants, synthetic fertilizers and bleach that were used to grow and manufacture the cotton fabric.
Organic Farming Practices
- Create healthy soils which make better use of water inputs and are more resilient in drought conditions. By eliminating the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, organic cotton keeps waterways and drinking water safe and clean.
- Organic farmers also use crop rotation to conserve soil and preserve natural nutrients.
- Pull out weeds by hand or use special machinery created to eliminate the use of chemical weed control.
- Avoid monocultures and promote biodiversity. A wide variety of plants and animals can grow and live in a natural environment .
- Eliminate the use of chemical pesticides by employing natural enemies of pests, like lady bugs, birds, and/or frogs.