Eco fibres and eco friendly textiles 4

NATIVE COLOUR COTTON PROJECT PERU •COMMENCED IN 1984 TO DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY TO SUPPORT INDIGENOUS FARMERS AND •COLOURED COTTON IS PRODUCED WITHOUT THE USE OF SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS A

NATIVE COLOUR COTTON PROJECT

PERU

•COMMENCED IN 1984 TO

DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY TO SUPPORT

INDIGENOUS FARMERS AND

•COLOURED COTTON IS PRODUCED

WITHOUT THE USE OF SYNTHETIC FERTILIZERS AND PESTICIDES

•COTTON PLANT GROWS UP TO 5

METERS HIGH YIELD 10 KG PER PLANT

•REMARKABLY RESISTANT TO PEST

AND DISEASES

•THRIVES IN MARGINAL SOILS WITH

LITTLE OR NO RAIN FALL

PRE-HISPANIC GRAVE in the Chancay Valley of Peru is heaped with naturally

colored cotton bolls The ancient people of this coastal area filled the body of the deceased with the cotton, which would absorb the bodily fluids, thereby aiding in the process of mummification The arid sands of the region preserved the cotton (which was removed from the body when this grave was looted.)

SIX PRINCIPLE COLOUR

VARIETIES

CREAM Pista green

MEDIUM BROWN

REDDISH BROWN

CHOCOLATE BROWN

MAUVE Brown verities possess anti-bacterial and anti-

fungal properties COFFEE FILTERS MADE FROM CERTIFIED ORGANIC COLOURED COTTON FREE FROM

PESTIFCIDES, BLEACHES AND

SYNTHETIC COLOURS Natural coloured yarns and fabrics are certified by

SKAL, Dutch certifying agency

PERUVIAN

TAPESTRY from A.D

1000 depicts a cotton

plant complete with

roots, leaves, stems,

flowers and ripening

cotton bolls spilling

forth with naturally

pigmented cotton

Four species of cotton have

different lint lengths.

COTTON HARVESTING is done by

hand in Peru

Women then sort the cotton, also by hand, for color and quality.

Traditional spinning bowl

LINT FIBER greatly enlarged reveals the natural twist The dark masses impart the natural color.

Coloured cotton bolls are hand picked

Small quantity is used for craft production and domestic consumption in rural market.

Large quantity is consumed in uraban market

as textile products Medical remedy for over fifty somatic and

psychosomatic disorders Colour cotton cultivation by traditional farmers

is officially protected Large number of traditional farmers are

immensely benefited

No patents are held on native colored

cotton, respecting and promoting the crop protection rights of the indigenous people of

Peru.

Today Indian descendants of ancient Peruvian cultures still harvest, gin

and spin by hand the natural colored cottons of Peru.

Slivers of coloured cotton

Naturally coloured yarn for Kniting and Weaving

Coloured cotton fabrics

COTTON CLOTHES in naturally occurring colors are produced in Peru

Sally Fox was introduced to colored cotton while working for a cotton breeder, whose focus was

developing pest-resistant strains of cotton

The peoples of Central and South America had spun these strains for centuries, but the fiber qualities were

not sufficient for modern machine spinning

Here was Sally Fox’s opportunity to combine her

concern for the environment, work in her field of entomology, and practice her favorite pastime, spinning and weaving

Sally Fox in 1982 took on the challenge of improving an ancient agricultural art.

Fox successfully bred and marketed varieties of naturally coloured cotton she calls FoxFiber ®

Today, Sally Fox designs fabrics with her cotton and

continues research

Fox has received a patent and three Plant Variety

Protection Certificates for her naturally colored cottons which, in addition to browns, she now grows in reds and greens

Her invention has been so popular it has sprouted two successful companies Vreseis, Ltd and Natural Cotton Colours, both operating in Arizona

Natural qualities found in Fox Fibre:

Furnish lasting color; repeated washings intensify colors bringing out the warm and rich color tones

Enable our cottons to be spun from 100% solid color

to any percentage of color blends Blends of Fox Fibre colors (with each other or with white) can create all of the color shades within the beige, khaki, brown, red brown, dark brown, and green color

spectrums Provide a fire retardant tendency Eliminate the need for bleaches, dyes, & other costly processes during textile and product manufacturing

Sally Fox is associted with Athena Mills

Arizona

Athena Mills is recognized as a leader for two environmentally descriptive trademarks

- Colorganic® and Colour-By-Nature®

Both marks ensure the final product's color

is from naturally colored cotton

Colorganic additionally ensures certified organic growing practices for all of the

cotton fibers in the final product.

Fox Fibre offers consumers an ecological alternative in cotton: today's purchase for tomorrow's environment

ECO LABELS

Eco-labels are product labels that

inform consumers about the environmental impact of a

product

They encourage producers to switch

to environmentally sound production

process methods (PPMs) for

advantage in the marketplace

Eco-labels allow producers to

differentiate their products from

products that are less environmentally friendly

and thus to reach environmentally

conscious consumers

ECO LABEL CRITERIA

ENVIRONMENT FRIENDLINESS OF THE ENTIRE LIFE CYCLE OF THE PRODUCT CRADLE TO GRAVE ASSESSMENT

1 Production of raw materials

2 Production of the end product

3 Packaging and transport of raw materials and the finished product

4 Use of the product by companies and

consumers

5 Disposal of the product e.g assessment of a T-shirt starts in the cotton field and ends in the incineration

plant.

ECO LABEL CRITERIA

•As little use as possible of chemical

substances harmful to the environment

•No or very few heavy metals in the product

•Energy conservation during production and

use

•The lowest possible amounts of harmful

substances in wastewater

•Requirements which ensure that the

product works well and will last long

Opportunities for recycling/reuse

•The product should be as unproblematic as

possible in terms of waste

POTENTIALLY HARMFUL SUBSTANCES

pH Formaldehyde Heavy metals (As, Pb, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni,

Hg) Pesticides Chlorinated phenols

Dyestuffs (specific classifications) Chlorinated organic carriers

Boicidal finishes Flame retardent finishes

Colour fastness Emission of volatiles

Odours

Republic of China–Taiwan

Green Mark

Thailand (Thai Green Label

Korea Environmental Labelling

Japan Eco Mark India Eco Mark

Australia/New Zealand Environmental Choice European Union Eco-label “Flower”

scheme

Nordic Countries (Nordic Swan )