Tshirt Printing Manchester - Is It Safe To Buy Cotton T-Shirts?

Cotton is, undoubtedly, one of the most known, looked for and used clothing's fabric high and low. It is widespread and people usually buy cotton plain t-shirts, for example, for the quality, as the fabric doesn't habitually cause irritations or allergies, allows skin to 'breathe' and it's a wash-and-wear material. Whether it's wholly cotton or mixed with polyester, it commonly comes at an affordable price. But did you know how cotton T-shirts are manufactured? And, most importantly, did you know that the way of manufacturing them can be harmful to the environment?

Pesticides are heavily used on cotton fields, in order to protect it from pests. It is normal for companies to want to keep safe their cotton production from insects. For that purpose, they use pesticides intensively. While it works for the cotton, as the pests are eliminated, however, pesticides are harmful for the environment, having devastating effects. Not only habitats are destroyed, but also human beings are affected.

 

 

For instance, it was discovered that quails, birds which usually nest around cotton fields, as they prefer tall vegetation, are the first to be affected. 60% of quails living near cotton fields were discovered to have pesticides inside of them. According to a study, due to methyl parathion, a spray that is used as a pesticide on cotton fields, quails can get sick and even die.

Conducted in 1978, the study also observed that quails often abandon their nests or don't watch out after their young. Their natural habitat is damaged in an era when animals are growing less with each day that passes.

Not only animals' habitats are affected. Apparently, people can get sick too. There were reported cases of farmers who either fell ill or died from intensive use of pesticides. Such a case was in Benin, a country in the west of Africa, in 1999. 24 men, who were working on cotton fields, died by reason of exposure to a common pesticide there, called Endosulfan. A high price to pay for some cotton plain T-shirts, right?

However, fortunately, there are ways of preventing this damaging or negative effect. Such a way is lessening the use of pesticides, by turning to a production consisting mainly in the use of organic means. Thus, organic cotton is produced which is, surely, better than cotton for which pesticides were used.

For the organic cotton, these manufacturers use more natural means in order to stop insects, like putting ladybugs on cotton fields. This way of pest protection is not only good for the environment, as it does not affect it or damage it, but is also safe for people working on the cotton fields. Companies like these, which produce organic cotton, can be found in Australia.

tshirt printing manchester