So I'm at Target yesterday (why is it so hard to find a hula hoop?) and I fell upon a series of t-shirts in the juniors section with messages like this. Support Organic Farmers. Think Global, Act Local. Every Day Is Earth Day. Save the Planet. And a nice nod to the ever-popular High School Musical, but with hands holding up the earth, We're All in This Together.
Okay, fine, so one look at the tags showed that the t-shirts are made in Thailand, are not organic, and no proceeds from the sale of them go to help any earth-friendly organization. Three missed opportunities. But. They do get the word out, and they do target (so to speak) teen girls, a demographic that can be passionate about cause-marketing efforts (if you can find a way to connect with them) (or, at least, if they are looking to boost their college applications).
I almost bought one for my older daughter--the one that said The Road Less Traveled, since that Robert Frost poem is our favorite and we recite it often as we hike through the woods. It was only nine dollars.
But.
Turns out non-organic cotton is made with nine of the worst pesticides there are, all nine of which are classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as category I or category II materials in toxicity, with five of the nine being known cancer-causing agents. Non-organic cotton is responsible for 25% of pesticides used on all crops in the U.S. (25% of all insecticides and 10% of all pesticides worldwide).
Cotton, interestingly, makes up 50% of the world's fiber. It is grown around the world, and cottonseed oil is found in many food products, including feed for factory-raised animals.
Thankfully, the organic fiber cotton market is growing exponentially. More affordable options are becoming available, but let's face it. Organic cotton is significantly more labor-intensive and the costs will be higher.
I currently own one organic cotton shirt. One. My Georgia Organics t-shirt. And frankly, I do like the idea of having clothes to wear each day. So can I really afford to stand there all high-falutin' and say I'm not going to buy that t-shirt at Target?
If it says, Support Organic Farmers on it yet does nothing to support them, I can.
I'm calling Target today. Maybe they do give back to organic farmers. Just maybe . . .
UPDATE: 12/22
Well, this is more like an anti-update, because I haven't heard back from Target yet, but I'll let you know when (and if ) I do.
7 comments:
I've been making a lot of our clothes lately and organic cotton fabric is so expensive. It has been a quandry of what to do for fabric. I hate dressing my kid in pesticides. We each own a few things made of organic cotton that I bought already made.
It's a tough one, Christy. I know I vote with my dollar, but I also have to consider affordability, and 60 bucks for an organic t-shirt designed-for-celebrities is just not a sustainable direction for me. I'm choosing to do without as much as possible, and really wear what I have. I think the most responsible thing I can do is try to maintain a stable weight so that I don't require new clothes until the old ones fall apart!
As for the kids, that's tougher because they just keep growin' . . .
Here in Austalia Target has organic ladies' undies for a reasonable price ! You've got to start from the bottom up, so to speak !
:)
A few ideas: it's not organic, but there are lots of good clothes at thrift shops. Buy there to save money, recycle clothes (you have to hunt for good ones), and employ people (Goodwill's mission is to train people to enter/re-enter the workforce.)
Recycle envelopes that you get with bills and solicitations. I haven't bought a new envelope in years - all mine have labels pasted over someone else's printing (be sure to cover up bar codes or the post office machines will read that and not what you wrote for the address).
During drought I keep a flat pan in 1 side of the sink to catch dishwashing water which then gets thrown on plants. It's my homemade gray-water system. : )
Many of my neighbors haven't signed-up for recycling so I asked them to contribute to my blue container when they see it out on Wednesdays. (I can't stand to see their newspapers left out for the regular trash.)
We wash and re-use Starbucks type cups and caps for drinking hot chocolate and smoothies on those mad morning rushes to school.
Oh, I especially like that idea about inviting the neighbors to contribute to my blue box on recycling day! Good one! Thanks, Lisa!
Yes, I saw them at Target today too. Too bad - they were kinda cute.
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