Cotton used for towels is a vegetable. It is an inedible vegetable grown by farmers who work the land day in day out. At IKEUCHI ORGANIC we exclusively use organic cotton grown by the bioRe PROJECT under Swiss firm REMEI and certified by GOTS, the global standard for organic certification. This organic cotton is brimming with vitality gained by growing from root tip to cotton ball with its own strength, without relying on agricultural chemicals.
Organic cotton is grown in 18 countries around the world including India, Turkey, China, and Tanzania. Several different certification organizations carry out checks to certify this cotton as organic under their standards. At IKEUCHI ORGANIC, we have chosen organic cotton grown by the bioRe Project in India and Tanzania as the most suitable, and use it exclusively for our organic cotton towels. bioRe cotton is grown without agricultural chemicals or chemical fertilizers through a social project that supports independence for farmers in disadvantaged communities
Cotton used by IKEUCHI ORGANIC has been inspected by Swiss certification organization bio.inspecta under strict EU standards from the fields through to the spinning process and granted organic certification. Criteria include using non-genetically modified seeds, growing in fields where chemical fertilizers and agricultural chemicals have not been used for three years or more, and spinning the yarn at certified factories. This certification also proves that the human rights of producers are respected by inspecting the working conditions of people involved in production from the fields through to the factories.
Regular cotton is grown using more agricultural chemicals that any other crop in the world. For years the global demand for cotton was met through this method; however since the 1970s evidence of the adverse impact these chemicals have on the workers and surrounding environment began to emerge. Meanwhile, with the advance in technology to manipulate genes, the use of genetically engineered seeds has seen a sharp growth worldwide as a means of producing big yields of high quality cotton. In India, a major cotton producer, genetically engineered cotton now accounts for more than 90% of the total. However genetic engineering technology cannot be accepted in the organic world. In order to sustain organic cotton, the procurement of non-GE seeds has emerged as a pressing issue.
