GREEN AGRICULTURE: SHAPING THE FUTURE OF FARMING AND PRODUCING "GREENER" NATURAL FIBRES - GUEST ARTICLE FROM CARY SHERBURNE

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1 Nov

Written By Debbie Mckeegan

GUEST ARTICLE WRITTEN BY CARY SHERBURNE OF WHATTHEYTHINK

When we write about sustainability in textiles, we are often talking about the manufacturing processes. But for true sustainability, we need to go back a step further to understand where the feed stocks are coming from.

As with most things sustainable, progress, albeit slow from a global perspective, is being made, with more attention being turned to more sustainable processes in agriculture.

According to SolarImpulse.com, “Agriculture is the world’s largest industry. Intensive agriculture as it has been practiced since the 1960s has very high yields, but depletes the soil and pollutes the environment: greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, ocean acidification, etc.”

As with many things in this time of climate crisis, there is a growing focus on green agriculture. SolarImpulse describes green agriculture as “The application of the sustainable development principles to agriculture: ensuring the production of food, wood and fibers while respecting the ecological, economic, and social limits that ensure the durability of this production.” For instance, sustainable farming minimizes the use of pesticides that can harm the health of farmers and consumers.

Key principles are linked to sustainable agriculture:

Develop efficient, self-sufficient and economical production systems that provide decent incomes.
Preserve and protect biodiversity and territories.
Optimize the use of natural resources.
Manage the quality of air, water, and soil.
Increase energy efficiency in food production and distribution.

In textiles, we are primarily talking about growing natural fibers that are ultimately turned into fabric for a variety of uses. This includes cotton, flax (linen), bamboo, and a growing number of other fibers that textile manufacturers are turning to in order to deliver a more sustainable natural fiber product.

Arguably, one of the most popular agricultural products for textiles is cotton—we love our T-shirts and other products made from 100% cotton. We think about cotton as a natural product that is more sustainable than, for example, polyester, which is, of course, petroleum-based. Historically, cotton farming has not been sustainable at all. But there is plenty of work underway to correct that.

According to the World Wildlife Foundation, “Cotton’s most prominent environmental impacts result from the use of agrochemicals (especially pesticides), the consumption of water, and the conversion of habitat to agricultural use. Diversion of water and its pollution by cotton growing has had severe impacts on major ecosystems such as the Aral Sea in Central Asia, the Indus Delta in Pakistan and the Murray Darling River in Australia.” The organization notes that production and processing of cotton uses a large amount of water, a resource whose availability is increasingly diminished in many parts of the globe.

Let’s Talk Cotton!

Some experts contend that cotton is the largest user of water among all agricultural commodities. In addition to water usage, traditional cotton cultivation severely degrades soil quality and causes pollution due to use of pesticides and other chemicals. Including contaminating water sources with irrigation runoff.

There are many efforts around the globe to mitigate this issue. One example is the Sustainable Cotton Project(SCP) in California. SCP is a private nonprofit organization who works with conventional farmers to help them implement biologically based management practices. SCP’s program has enabled growers to reduce their dependence on toxic chemicals and utilized reduced risk practices leading to cleaner air and water in the region. Farmers can join the initiative and get access to a wide range of support as they work to make their farming operations more sustainable. This includes “weekly field scouting for pests and beneficial insects, a list of chemicals to avoid (based on toxicity), direct access to University of California scientists and other crop and industry experts, farmer field days on pertinent topics, and assistance with marketing the cotton grown.” They are also encouraged to plant other ground cover, including alfalfa, to minimize erosion, help replenish the soil and more. Cotton grown under this project can bear the trademark Cleaner Cotton™.

Interestingly, the project is also exploring the ability to grow colored fibers, which in turn could reduce some requirements for dyeing cotton fabric. And because the fabric is not dyed, colors are more durable, helping garments and other textile-based materials to stay in use longer.

Linen

Linen, made from the flax plant, is a more sustainable textile than cotton and many other fiber choices. According to Cariki, “A key reason why linen is a sustainable fabric is because the entire flax plant can be woven into a fiber, which means that almost no waste is left over from the spinning and weaving process. If organically processed without chemicals or intensive dyes, it also means no water pollution is made.”

Linen is also biodegradable. In fact, pure natural linen can start to decompose in just two weeks. However, when considering its biodegradability, it is important to also consider whether or how the fabric was treated. Some treatments can stall biodegradation.

Flax advocates also claim that flax fields promote biodiversity and soil regeneration.

Other Sustainable Fibers

Eco-Stylist offers a list of the most sustainable fibers, including cotton and linen. When purchasing textile-based products, be sure to keep these in mind. These include organic cotton, hemp and linen (especially those using more sustainable practices such as interplanting, water conservation and more). They also highlight Tencell Lycell fiber, made from wood pulp with properties similar to rayon.

Since it’s derived from plant material, it is biodegradable. The process for creating Tencel fiber, a relatively new fiber, was designed specifically to reduce environmental impact. The production of Tencel uses only one-third of the water that is needed to produce rayon, and over 99% of the water and solvents used are able to be recycled.

They also identify fibers to avoid. At the top of the list is polyester, due to its reliance on non-renewable petroleum. In all honesty, it’s very difficult to avoid textile products made with or blended with polyester, since 60% of garments include at least some polyester, and even more includes elastin—we love our stretchy fabrics—which is also petroleum-based. Even worse, it is very difficult to recycle blended fiber fabrics. They can, however, be ground up for use as mattress and other types of stuffing, cleaning rags, and more. The collection and processing of fabrics for this purpose is happening, but not really at scale yet. So much of it ends up in landfills.

Other fibers to avoid include acrylic, conventionally grown cotton, rayon (viscose), and nylon.

Vertical Farming

Vertical farming is another option gaining steam. In Bangladesh, according to this post on LinkedIn, vertical farming is being explored for local production of cotton. The country produces only around 3% of the annual demand for 10 million bales of cotton used in its textile production, which is not at all significant.

We typically think about vertical farming for use in food production, including tomatoes and leafy vegetables, using hydroponics, aquaponics, and aeroponics. If the projects in Bangladesh are successful, this could mean dramatic change in the production of fibers for textile manufacturing.

Driving Change

As we have discussed in the past with respect to unsustainable practices like Fast Fashion, change will ultimately be driven by us—the consumers of these products—by voting with our wallets.

As consumers become more educated about sustainability, and as regulatory agencies become more concerned about the environmental impact of poor farming practices, including, by the way, the treatment of workers, we will start to see change accelerate. This will also be helped by the use of QR codes on product labeling, which can often track the source of the fibers used in the fabric, giving consumers even more insight into sustainability of the items the purchase.

While it doesn’t have much to do with sourcing of fibers, it is also interesting to note that the European Union recently agreed that the bloc should ban the destruction of unsold textiles, part of the EU’s green push towards reducing waste through greater reuse and recycling.

This is a huge step forward, and our hope is that other governmental agencies around the globe will consider adopting similar regulations.

About Cary Sherburne: Cary Sherburne is a well-known author, journalist and marketing consultant whose practice is focused on marketing communications strategies for the printing and publishing industries.

Cary Sherburne is available for speaking engagements and consulting projects. To get more information contact us. Please offer your feedback to Cary. She can be reached at cary@whattheythink.com.