Wool fiber is usually also de-scaled and shrink proofed. De-scaling wool modifies the scales on the wool fibers to prevent shrinkage and to reduce itchiness. This step usually involves application of organochlorines followed by application of some sort of synthetic polymer. Organochlorines are a class of chemicals with a toxic profile to be assiduously avoided.
The use of polymers on wool yarn is also to be avoided.

There are also numerous animal husbandry and land use issues (pasture management) which are important environmental issues unique to wool. One of the animal husbandry issues (Consumers of organic wool presumably desire a product from animals treated humanely) unique to sheep is the practice of mulesing. Sheep who are raised in certain climates (much of Australia) are susceptible to a condition called “fly-strike.” What is fly-strike? A certain type of fly, blow flies, are attracted to and lay eggs on sheep’s’ back legs when the sheep are less than clean. When the flies hatch, these maggots burrow in any slightly raw or inflamed area and literally eat their victim alive. To control this condition, fly strike, herders “mules” the sheep, which means cutting away large swaths of their skin. Since mulesing is traditionally done without anesthetics, it is considered (not much of an argument from me) inhumane. Several large stores in Europe, including Marks and Spencer and H&M, refuse to use wool from sheep that are mulesed.

I produce a mag called THE ARCHITECT and this issue we are discussing TEXTILES.
My question is related to wool. Have you researched wool and Eco wool in particular?
As you know Australia is a huge producer of wool and there seems to be a swing to holistic farming of sheep to alleviate the problems associated with sheep farming

How ever the standard manuals are describing the substances and their allowable units.. but i could not able to figure out the list of dyes banned / not allowed to use – to get the said certifications…

I think Leigh Anne (My sister) missed your main point, which is where do you get your bamboo yarn and will you sell it to us? Sure, we can look into it. (We can buy the yarn together). Email me at patty@oecotextiles.com and we’ll chat. I must warn you that these fabrics are our very most expensive. Just the yarn to produce one meter would run you upwards of $12/yard – that’s before milling, dyeing, finishing, taxes, duty ( yes – into the US the duty is just under 15%- freight, etc. But contact me and let’s talk. Please give me time to answer – we’re pretty swamped these days, as I’m sure you may be too.

There are some producers who do properly treat the effluent; in some cases the sodium hydroxide can be replaced by a more benign chemical (N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide). And some manufacturers treat the sulfuric acid to neutralize it so the wastewater meets drinking water standards.

Some manufacturers claim that a third party certification, such as Oeko Tex , ensures that the process is green. But the fiber that is produced has no chemical residues from the processing so it passes all tests, such as those done by Oeko Tex, with flying colors. (I have to make another point here: Oeko Tex is product specific, that is they test the product but don’t care to investigate how it was produced.) Bamboo viscose is a wonderful fiber with many great attributes but unfortunately the process used to create it leaves a lot to be desired.

So the questions to ask are: how do you dispose of the effluent, and how is it treated? Do you carefully monitor emissions (as the sulfuric acid evaporates)? Have you made any improvements to the standard chemical mixture – for example, do you use N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide rather than sodium hydroxide? As for certifying organic bamboo fiber: I think you need to determine how and where it was grown and harvested, as well as how it was produced, what procedures were followed, what chemicals were used and what actions were taken to neutralize or negate the effects of the chemicals used. I’m of the school that thinks you can’t separate the product from the production. Leigh Anne
Leigh Anne

Best,
April

There are some companies in Europe that are beginning to produce finished products for babies – clothing and bedding for example. The laws in the EU are much stricter than the US in terms of what is allowed to be used in textiles, so more companies are producing to those standards. Products that are Oeko Tex Standard 100 certified have been tested for over 100 chemicals that are harmful to humans, and a baby could happily play on (even suck on) fabrics that are Oeko Tex 100 certified. Hanna Andersson (www.hannaandersson.com) in this country sells some products which are Oeko Tex 100 certified – not all of their products are Oeko Tex certified so you’ll have to inquire.

But you’re looking for just the fabrics. I would suggest trying the Green China Textile Group (http://www.greenchinagroup.com) for apparel weight fabrics. I know that they have hemp and organic cotton fabrics in many weights and they are trying to use heavy metal free dyes, and they’re honestly trying to green the processes. I also don’t know the minimums they have just now, but you could inquire. Another possiblity in the US is Harmony Art (http://www.harmonyart.com). Harmony Susulla has been producing organic cotton fabrics that are produced to Global Organic Textile Standards and she has beautiful prints which are available as cut goods. If you’re in the UK, Greenfibres (http://www.greenfibres.com) has been staple reading for me for years; I really admire their committment and the information they can give you on their web site. I hope that gives you some direction.

I know how frustrating the search can be, especially now when we could produce just about anything so it is non toxic and environmentally benign. It just takes us to push the producers outside their comfort zone and encourage them to do things differently. Good luck. We’ll post more finds for those of you looking for apparel fabrics as we discover them, so check back occasionally.
Best, Leigh Anne