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Organic Trade  

Organic Trade

Organic Trade Association (OTA)

While the pesticides from the cotton in your clothing most likely will not seep into your bloodstream, buying organic clothing helps lessen the impact that conventional farming has on the earth and her inhabitants.  Organic agriculture protects the environment and health of people and animals by reducing exposure to toxic chemicals that can end up in the ground, air, water, and food supply.  The following are some facts about pesticides and organic cotton made public by the Organic Trade Association:

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. (CropLife America)

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 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. (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)

It takes roughly one-third of a pound of chemicals (pesticides and fertilizers) to grow enough cotton for just one T-shirt. (SCP)