About Sustainable Shopping 2: Bamboo

 

(Fabric, that is - I'll be looking at other products later.)

“This shirt is made from a tree”...

...is something I don't recall ever saying during those years, long ago, when I was a retail menswear salesman. I would have lost the sale and probably my job. So why do people keep saying “This garment is made from bamboo”?

Back then the textile I would have been referring to was rayon (aka viscose and various other names). And the textile that is now described as bamboo is - usually – rayon (aka viscose and various other names). It's been around for 100 years and more. It's an artificial fibre made from cellulose and the cellulose is got from woody sources like trees and bamboo.

I'm checking out bamboo because in my attempts to shop more sustainably I find it being used to support claims of environmental friendliness.

Bamboo growing requires no fertilisers and much less water than cotton; it grows almost anywhere and leaves the soil virtually unharmed. So by the time it arrives in the factory bamboo can be far ahead of rivals like polyester and conventionally grown cotton in terms of sustainability. So far so good.

But unless you're going to make underwear by nailing bamboo sticks together it needs to go through a lot of changes before it becomes that nice soft material we're familiar with. And there's the rub. That process can involve the use of noxious chemicals which do great harm to the environment and to the people working with them. However there are a few responsible and innovative producers out there who are working to realise the good potential of bamboo.

So I tried to separate them out from the rest. It wasn't easy. It's a subject filled with technicalities and misdirection. Here's what I found out.

1/The Source

The only point in the process at which being bamboo makes a difference is at this stage. It needs none of the pesticides, fertilisers and vast water consumption of 'the world's dirtiest crop', cotton; it is not a fossil fuel product such as polyester. And it grows more or less anywhere without damaging the soil. So a manufacturer using bamboo is off to an excellent start. But we still need to know that it is being grown without displacing vital natural resources (e.g. rainforest) or essential crops such as food.

2/ Processing

On entering the processing works it's the way the woody plant is treated that is important. If noxious chemicals (commonly carbon disulphide) are discharged into a river after being used to extract the cellulose, being bamboo won't improve matters. A responsible manufacturer will recover the chemicals and keep reusing them so that they never get out out into the wider world. I need to be assured that a product is made in this way, which is known as a closed loop process - a term I should look for on the labelling.

3/ Cellulose

From now on it's just cellulose. And cellulose is cellulose regardless of the kind of tree or plant it came from. It is no longer that tree or plant. Nor is it at this point any longer a fibre and so cannot have any of the attributes of a fibre, bamboo or otherwise. (This is important, see below, Endnote 5, 'Here's what the the FTC says about bamboo'.)

4/ Fibre/fabric/end product

That cellulose gloop is squeezed through tiny holes to create a new kind of fibre. Now it's the added stuff that counts. Such things as dressings, dyes and fire retardants can contain polluting, lingering, chemicals. Non-toxic alternatives do exist and I need to know they have been used.

5/ End of Life Disposal

Rayon is not recyclable. But it is biodegradable, a big point in its favour, though it needs help. It won't happen on your garden compost heap. It needs 'hot composting' – simple enough to set up if you are an enthusiast, but it really needs to be done at municipality level if it is to be done at scale. In landfill it takes a very long time to biodegrade, and releases methane in so doing (though responsible landfill operators should control this). It is at this stage that the added treatments in point 4 are significant. These should be biodegradable and non-toxic so that they are not left behind as pollutants as the material biodegrades.

At all these stages I need to be reassured about the conditions affecting farmers and workers. Are they paid properly? Are their working conditions safe? No child labour. No enforced labour or slavery – etc.

So here goes – decisions

Bamboo - Certified as ethically and sustainably sourced and processed with no toxic end of life residues? OK, I'll go for it. But I have been able to find only two such.

The first is so good that this would be a very short blog post if it were easily available. It is mechanically processed bamboo, where no nasty chemicals are used and no environmental or workplace hazards are involved. Here's what Sewport says about it:

'Bamboo fabric of the highest quality is made with production practices that do not extract cellulose. Instead, a natural enzyme is used on crushed bamboo wood fibers, and these fibers are then washed and spun into yarn. This yarn usually has a silky texture, and the fabric made by this process is sometimes called bamboo linen.

When bamboo fabric is made with this method, it is not environmentally harmful, and the resulting textile is strong and long-lasting.'

See this manufacturer: 

https://paragonbamboo.com/where-does-our-bamboo-come-from/

The second, which is not mechanically processed, is Monocel. This uses the Lyocell closed loop system to process ethically grown bamboo sustainably. See: https://www.launch.org/innovators/jonny-kristiansen/

One to be wary of is viscose, the old production method, still very widely used today. This is the one that, in the hands of unscrupulous manufacturers, causes serious pollution and danger to workers. Some manufacturers do handle it responsibly but I would need clear assurances about this before considering it. And I have to say that whilst there are plenty of assurances out there, most of them are far from clear.

If I'm told only that a product is bamboo, without being given any further information, I have to assume they're bullshitting me, probably using viscose, probably not closed loop. Or else why would they keep quiet about it? So, obviously, I have no intention of buying their stuff. I would sooner look instead for sustainably manufactured rayon from other sources, so long as they are sustainably grown.

Lenzing Modal, for instance, is a brand which is sourced from sustainably grown beech wood and which meets stringent criteria of sustainability in its processing. Other Modals are available but beware – there are dodgy ones out there. See Sustainable Jungle.

And:

https://sewport.com/fabrics-directory/modal-fabric

Tencel is another Lenzing brand using sustainably sourced wood. The ethical outdoor pursuits brand Patagonia uses Tencel in its products, see here .

Tencel spell out their sustainability claim here.

There's a good article here about Tencel, listing brands that use it:

https://goodonyou.eco/how-ethical-is-tencel/

And here: Good Housekeeping

This retailer is properly serious about sustainability and workers rights:

https://www.baukjen.com/blogs/journal/our-purpose

They are stockists of Lenzing and much else. I predict I'll be saying much more about them in future posts.

There is a good article here, which covers the exploitation of workers as well as the environmental concerns, and, importantly, it outs some of the offending brands:

https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing/campaign-clean-viscose .

Anything Else? Yes -

There's a lot of word play out there and I need to make sure I see through it. For example, I came across a knitting yarn called Tencel Bamboo Fine. Looks good? Tencel made from bamboo? Well no. It's Tencel, which we have already seen is not made from bamboo, and Bamboo. In a 40/60 combination. So 40% sustainable product and 60% rayon of unknown provenance. The sales description I read goes into detail about the credentials of the 40% Tencel and remains silent as to the other. In the absence of further information I will assume therefore that it's 60% nasty old-school viscose (so the bamboo is actually the unsustainable part of this product) and avoid it. (But see below, Endnote 3, 'Mixes as a way of getting a toehold.')

The word, 'organic' occurs often yet rayon cannot fulfil the criteria for that classification as, although the original bamboo may be organic, it ceases to exist in the cellulose. (With one possible borderline exception, see note 4, 'Can bamboo rayon ever be organic?') And how about this one: 'Our bamboo is processed into a fibre using organic chemicals...' I can only imagine this manufacturer is using the word here in its scientific sense which is not at all the same as when we apply it to a cabbage or cotton. If I remember my high school chemistry right, organic is the term used to describe carbon based chemicals. Hmm... I wonder - carbon disulphide? (More on this below, Endnote 2, 'Word Play'.)

I'm a customer, not a scientist, and I want to be told what I am buying. I should not have to wade through industry, technical and specialist sources to find this out because vendors wrap their products around with deliberately ambiguous, misleading language. Just as bad as obviously flagrant environmental vandalism is greenwash, causing consumers to damage the environment while under the impression they are doing something to protect it.

In conclusion I have to say that I've reached a point where the word 'bamboo' applied to a product doesn't reassure me - it annoys me. It is most often just a 'hooray word' used to spread an unjustified aura of greenness.

Bamboo is a great crop with potentially a great future. Its use means we're not digging up ancient carbon and putting it back into the atmosphere. It saves us from needing all those herbicides and pesticides. It doesn't waste vast quantities of water. It's an economically viable crop which can be grown almost anywhere. So I will do my tiny bit to help bring on that great future by supporting those manufacturers who are mechanically processing bamboo and those who are using sustainable non-mechanical processes. As there are few of these – and if I really must have rayon - I will also support those who are responsibly making cellulose products from responsibly grown wood of whatever kind. If they go on at some point in the future to use bamboo as a source wood then so much the better. In that future, which I hope is not far away, I hope I will see more manufacturers cleaning up their bamboo act. And my local authority will be collecting their products when I've finished with them along with my other composting waste.

***

Endnotes:

Sources, links, some additional or expanded thoughts and the odd rant.

1/ Alternatives to rayon should definitely be considered, such as organic cotton, recycled cotton and hemp. These are more sustainable than even the best rayon according to Ethical Consumer.

2/ Word play – it's a real pity that we have to beat our way through such a thicket of this sort of thing in order to simply know what we are buying. A pity, but not unexpected, as I pointed out in my introductory post . For instance here's a fuller version of a quote I use in the post above:

'The bamboo we sell at Simplifi Fabric is bamboo viscose manufacturer [sic] with the closed loop process.

Our bamboo is processed into a fibre using organic chemicals that are covered under the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification and are 100% recyclable. The process utilises a 'closed-loop' system where all chemicals used are recycled and used again, and again.

Our bamboo textiles are certified under one or more of the following certifications:

• Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

• Oeko-Tex Standard 100

• OCS Blended - Organic Content Standard

• OCS 100 - Organic Content Standard'

There are certainly some encouraging words there – organic, recyclable, closed loop. Let's look: '...processed into a fibre using organic chemicals'. As already pointed out, this seems to be the technical usage of the word, not at all the same as what we mean when we apply it to, say, cotton.

'...100% recyclable...' True, if used in a closed loop system, which the blurb goes on to tell us is the case – so that's a positive.'….covered under the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification.' Well, as far as I can discover, Oeko-Tex Standard 100 is about end-user safety. The product is tested after manufacture for the presence of things that may harm the user. It is not its job to look at what happens on the way. So long as any nasties have been washed away by the time the product pops off the production line, it'll get a certificate. Here's what the Oeko-Tex website says:

'If a textile article carries the STANDARD 100 label, you can be certain that every component of this article, i.e. every thread, button and other accessories, [sic] has been tested for harmful substances and that the article therefore is harmless for human health. '

https://www.oeko-tex.com/en/our-standards/standard-100-by-oeko-tex

However the HelloNatural Living website disagrees with my point: '...the Oeko-Tex certification is your guarantee that your new clothes have been processed without harmful chemicals.' But I fail to see how they arrive at that conclusion because they say little more in the lead up to that statement than I have quoted above. That there are no nasties on the thing now doesn't mean there never have been. In fact it's viscose so we know there have been.

It's not that I want to disparage the Oeko-Tex standard, it's just that I don't want to see it misused. I want to pin down just what use it is to me as a customer when I see it tagged to a product. It shouldn't be this difficult. The precautionary principle tells me that it is of little use if I want to establish the environmental credentials of a product. See https://tuttifrutticlothing.com/blogs/news/why-organic-not-oeko-tex for some good sense.

And then there's 'Our bamboo textiles are certified under one or more of the following certifications'. Hmm... 'one or more'. Well, in this case just the one as far as I can see. What are the others there for? That green aura again? (See Endnotes 4 and 5 for more on this.)

And – I'm sorry Simplifi, I know you're not the only one – here's a fine example from their FAQ's of answering one question with the answer to a different, unasked, one:

Question: Is the process used to manufacture bamboo textiles harmful to the environment?

Answer: 'Bamboo is one of the fastest growing plants on earth with a growth rate of over 12 inches per day. 

Bamboo is tremendously strong and pest resistant. No fertilizers, pesticides or irrigation is required.

Bamboo does not require replanting. The shoots are cut to their base and the bamboo re-grows from new shoots.'

And so a question about processing the bamboo was given an answer about growing the bamboo. (The exasperated interlocutor there is of course WhysWhys)

As far as I am concerned, no-one in this murky scene gets the benefit of the doubt. I won't go near any product other than the very few I indicate in the main text.

3/ Mixes as a way of getting a toehold - Though my comment regarding Tencel Bamboo Fine was harsh, I do accept that there may be a place for such mixtures, clearly described. Sustainably produced materials have to push their way into the market yet have a price disadvantage. If this kind of blending can help them grow their business then maybe at some point soon economies of scale can kick in and they can gain a much more prominent position in the market. I hope. Maybe that's what the OCS 100 Blend standard is about. The OCS website tells us -

'The Organic Content Standard (OCS) applies to any non-food product containing 5-100 percent organic material. It verifies the presence and amount of organic material in a final product.'

See:

https://certifications.controlunion.com/en/certification-programs/certification-programs/ocs-blended-organic-content-standard

4/ Can bamboo rayon ever be organic?

See Organic 100: https://certifications.controlunion.com/en/certification-programs/certification-programs/ocs-100-organic-content-standard

If I understand right, we shouldn't expect this one to be awarded to bamboo rayon because the bamboo ceases to exist once the cellulose is created. Whereas it could be awarded to an organic cotton product because the fibres that came off the organically grown plant have been followed through and confirmed to remain in the end product.

This website, despite its name, seems to agree with that, while giving an explanation about how some Lenzing products come very close:

https://yesitsorganic.com/rayon-modal-tencel-environmental-friends-or-foes.html

5/ Here's what the the US Federal Trade Commission says about bamboo:

'If you make, advertise or sell bamboo-based textiles, the Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, wants you to know that unless a product is made directly with bamboo fiber — often called “mechanically processed bamboo” — it can’t be called bamboo. Indeed, to advertise or label a product as “bamboo,” you need competent and reliable evidence, such as scientific tests and analyses, to show that it’s made of actual bamboo fiber. Relying on other people’s claims isn’t substantiation. The same standard applies to other claims, like a claim that rayon fibers retain natural antimicrobial properties from the bamboo plant.'

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/how-avoid-bamboozling-your-customers

6/ Here's a good general article:

https://shopvirtueandvice.com/blogs/news/do-sustainable-fashionistas-buy-rayon-the-answer-may-surprise-you

7/ Quick Reference Essential Points:

• Mechanically processed bamboo fibre is great - nice if I can find it and afford it.
• Mostly though it's rayon made from cellulose derived from bamboo.
• Production is often very polluting. Look for closed loop, meaning chemicals are recycled; look for Monocell-Lyocell sustainable bamboo rayon; otherwise sustainable non-bamboo rayons e.g. Lenzing Modal and Tencel.
• If the only thing they tell me is that it's bamboo I assume it's greenwash - look out for misdirection and ambiguity.
• Rayon cannot be organic.
• Be careful to understand exactly what a certification label is telling me.
• Consider more sustainable alternatives such as recycled cotton or hemp.

 

I am not yet done with bamboo though. It is increasingly used for 'paper' and packaging products and much else. I'm looking at these and hope to post about some of them soon.

Next up: something quick and easy, I think, after that - about kitchen rolls and wiping and stuff.

About Sustainable Shopping 1: Why?

 I've always been fairly careful about the environmental impact of what I buy. My electricity and gas come from a 'green' supplier, I got in early with solar panels, I use Ecover cleaning products – and so on. But now I have decided to up my game. Which products can I keep on my shopping list because they are OK? Which should I strike off it?

If you have read my post about assholes you'll know that I think assholes are an ever present nuisance. That being so, I expect to find them working an angle in eco-friendly products just as much as anywhere else. In fact the term 'greenwash' has been coined to describe just that sort of behaviour.

Aside from them there are others to watch out for - the well meaning but wrong, who by the law of unintended consequences do more harm than good, and the enthusiastic exaggerators, bigging up marginal benefits as world savers.

In the field of sustainable products we should look out for all of them, as they bandy the eco-syllable about. Which is not to say I'm pessimistic about sustainable suppliers as a whole. I think they are helping us towards a better future and we should support them. Environmental damage is the result of the accumulated behaviours of a multitude of individuals. As one of those individuals I want to resign my contribution to the damage – as far as is possible at this time.

I'm obviously not equipped to mount a systematic survey of the whole retail sector – I'm just a shopper. Rather, I will write up a product as I come to it in my shopping.

We can be overwhelmed by the complexity of all the interacting issues around our purchases. So much so that we end up doing nothing for fear that we will just be doing harm in a different way. But we don't have to give up because we can't construct a complete remedy right now. There are simple things we can do straight away to make a beginning and to influence the manufacturers.

The easy, instant, thing I can do is to avoid the nonsensical items that have crept into our lives over recent decades. Like the bath soap which is now jellified and put into a throwaway plastic squirty bottle. Like the single use plastic carrier that replaced the shopping bag. Like bottled water – even in places where the tap water is better than bottled. And so on – I'm not going to attempt an exhaustive list because it would take a lot of time and would be stating the obvious.

But otherwise it's not that easy, which is why I have resolved to sort my head out about stuff and record my progress as I go.

Oh – one other thing. Sometimes sustainable products cost a bit more than the unsustainable ones. Well, the principle with cars and phones is that a product, expensive at first, gets going because of early uptakers, people who have enough money to afford it at that price. I'm not rich. But I am old and no longer have to support a family. I have a decent pension which covers my expenses with some to spare. So I'll be an early uptaker of sustainable stuff, which might not have been an option for me back when I was a single parent with a household to run on a tight budget. When enough of us get on board, economies of scale become possible and prices come down, and can be afforded by people like I was back then.

This is why it is very necessary that I satisfy myself about the credentials of what's on offer before I buy. I want my limited resources to go on products which are good for me and for the environment – not for greenwashers and delusionists.

The first product I tackle is 'Bamboo'. I began with the idea that I could just knock out a few recommendations before moving on to another subject. But I was soon disabused of that. It's a subject full of technical stuff stirred up with large helpings of ambiguity and misdirection. So it turned out to be a much bigger job than I imagined. See what I discovered here .