It’s been almost two years since we talked about certifications (click here to read our earlier post), so I think it’s time for a refresher, because, as one pundit said, “our product is green” is joining “the check’s in the mail” as one of the most frequent fibs in our modern times. According to TerraChoice, …
For the past few weeks we’ve been talking about the Green Revolution, and the problem of feeding 9 billion people. With respect to the Green Revolution, opinion is still divided as to how to assess its impact. Vandana Shiva, founder of Navdanya (a movement of 500,000 seed keepers and organic farmers) said that the Green …
The promise of the Green Revolution was that it would end hunger through the magic of chemicals and genetic engineering. The reasoning goes like this: the miracle seeds of the Green Revolution increase grain yields; higher yields mean more income for poor farmers, helping them to climb out of poverty, and more food means less …
“It is well that thou givest bread to the hungry, better were it that none hungered and that thou haddest none to give.” – St. Augustine Last week we posted Josh Viertel’s article about the false premise that Deutsche Bank and Monsanto used in finding ways to feed the world’s burgeoning population and end hunger. …
Last week we promised to explore the Green Revolution. The term “Green Revolution” was coined in the 1960s to highlight a particularly striking breakthrough in yields, which is the traditional way to measure agricultural performance – in tonnes per hectare, bushels per acre or whatever. Farmers have been trying to improve yields by improving seeds …
Last week I talked about the fears associated with feeding a world population of 7 billion – let alone 9 billion – and mentioned that there are those who see organic agriculture as a niche market, unable to provide the calories needed for those 9 billion. The topic is extraordinarily complex, and we can only …
According to the World Population Clock at the Office of Population Research at Princeton University, the population of the world is now 6.92 billion people. We’re supposed to reach 7 billion by the end of October of this year, according to the United Nations. This is much faster than anyone had expected and represents an …
We’re often asked if there are traces of pesticides in conventionally grown natural fibers – because people make the assumption that if pesticides are used on the plants, then there must be residuals in the fibers. And because the chemicals used on conventional cotton crops are among the most toxic known, such as aldicarb ( …
This year construction will start on a new factory in Bangladesh. It will be called the Grameen Otto Textile Company – and it will be the first textile mill of its kind in the world. A really special mill. But first let me give you some background which seems unrelated, but stick with me: Professor …
Plastics are a problem – and becoming more of a problem as time goes on because of our voracious appetite for the stuff: global plastic production grew by more than 500% over the past 30 years. And we have limited fossil fuels available – that fact alone dwarfs the plastics problem because we depend on …
OEcotextiles 