Our Use of In-Conversion Organic Cotton
Our aim, when Cause + Affect Ltd was first conceived, was to create a socially, ethically, and environmentally aware clothing brand which we felt was sorely needed in an industry that hadn’t previously had the best credentials in those areas. To do this correctly it was decided to look at every stage of the process we would use to create our clothing to discover the best ways to live up to our initial aims. The use of certified organic, fair-trade cotton was the most obvious choice for our first range of products as it covered the social, ethical, and environmental goals we had set.
As part of our ongoing mission it was decided to review our products & processes on a regular basis, in an attempt to see if we could improve upon the early standards we had set. It was during this evaluation that we became aware of the benefits of using in-conversion (or transitional) cotton. This may, at first glance, seem like a backwards step, to go from certified organic cotton to cotton grown on farms that have yet to receive their official accreditation. However, there are several very good reasons to support in-conversion organic farms:
1: To receive official EU organic certification a farm has to be running using no chemicals or soil additives for 2 years (currently 3 years in the USA). This period is set to allow all previous pollutants to work their way through the farms ecosystem. This ensures that certified organic cotton is exactly what it claims to be.
2: During this conversion process crop yields are lower and there is a greater risk of pests and diseases causing fairly major problems which creates a financial risk for farms undergoing this transition, supporting them during this period is vital.
3: Without the guarantee that there will be a market for their products during the conversion period it would be very hard for a small farmer to justify undergoing the transitional procedure, and the goal is to have as many organic farms as possible. By using the in-conversion cotton products we hope to encourage more and more farms to make the change!
With the above in mind we made the decision to try and use in-conversion organic cotton whenever possible, and will continue to support the farmers that make the brave choice to go organic.
