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The Financial Express
Having dumped the family sport-utility vehicle in favour of an energy-efficient Prius hybrid and packed the weekly shopping trolley with organic produce, where will the environmentally conscious ethical shopper turn next? For a growing number of green-minded consumers, the answer is the wardrobe.
Organic cotton—once found only on the backs of hippies and tree-huggers—is trying to go mainstream. Whether woven into clothing, linens, duvets or children's nappies, organic cotton is turning up everywhere, from pricey bed-and-breakfasts in Nantucket to the Green Baby shop in London's posh Notting Hill.
Proponents claim the fibre is better for the planet, for growers and for consumers than the more common sort of cotton. Whether or not that is true, organic cotton certainly looks attractive to retailers trying to burnish their socially responsible images. Ethics, after all, are all the rage.
Niche shops and eco-friendly firms such as Patagonia, a sportswear-maker, have been selling organic clothing for years. But now big retail chains are piling in. Marks & Spencer, Nordstrom and Wal-Mart are among those to jump on board. The Organic Exchange, an industry body, reckons that nearly $1.1 billion in organic-cotton products will be sold this year, nearly double last year's figure of $583m. It projects sales of $2.6 billion by 2008.
The Financial Express
Having dumped the family sport-utility vehicle in favour of an energy-efficient Prius hybrid and packed the weekly shopping trolley with organic produce, where will the environmentally conscious ethical shopper turn next? For a growing number of green-minded consumers, the answer is the wardrobe.
Organic cotton—once found only on the backs of hippies and tree-huggers—is trying to go mainstream. Whether woven into clothing, linens, duvets or children's nappies, organic cotton is turning up everywhere, from pricey bed-and-breakfasts in Nantucket to the Green Baby shop in London's posh Notting Hill.
Proponents claim the fibre is better for the planet, for growers and for consumers than the more common sort of cotton. Whether or not that is true, organic cotton certainly looks attractive to retailers trying to burnish their socially responsible images. Ethics, after all, are all the rage.
Niche shops and eco-friendly firms such as Patagonia, a sportswear-maker, have been selling organic clothing for years. But now big retail chains are piling in. Marks & Spencer, Nordstrom and Wal-Mart are among those to jump on board. The Organic Exchange, an industry body, reckons that nearly $1.1 billion in organic-cotton products will be sold this year, nearly double last year's figure of $583m. It projects sales of $2.6 billion by 2008.