Conventional cotton plantation covers around 2% of the earths’ cultivation lands and on the contrary around 15% of the worlds’ insecticides are used, more than any other single major crop. Chemicals used in the processing of cotton also pollute the air and the surface waters; contributing to decreased biodiversity and shifting equlibrium of ecosystems. For organic cotton production, usage of chemical fertilizers are banned.

Water usage is another problem to be solved for the sustainability regarding the textile industry. Cotton cultivation is far more the most water consumer of the conventional yarns used within the industry. On the other hand, organic cotton cultivation uses 90% less blue water than conventional cotton.

Organic cotton fiber has the lowest carbon footprint among the most used yarns in the industry. Around 3,75 Kg of CO2 /Ton is relased in the fiber production, where for conventional cotton it is double and for polyester yarn it is approximately triple. Also cotton production has the lowest energy usage regarding other yarns; around half the energy usage of conventional Viscose and  Pes fibers and one fifth of Nylon production usage.

We can summarize by numbers that; organic cotton reduces global warming by 50%, acidification of land by 70%, over fertilization by 25%, water consumption by 90% and energy use by 60% regarding conventional cotton.

As SNT Textile we have increased our organic cotton consumption from 3% to 30% of our overall cotton usage. Our target is to increase the amount to 75% in 3 years.