Ever been in a relationship where you felt the other person was just take, take, take? Where you felt like they never gave back (if my wife reads this, this is not referring to you!)?
That's probably how the Earth feels about Fashion. An industry that constantly drains its resources, does a great job at flushing pollution everywhere from soil to sea, and at the end just dumps everything back on it. Basically it's an abusive relationship!
So what can the industry do about it? How can it give back to the Earth?
One way is through regenerative agriculture. You may have seen us mention it - one of our brands, Neem, sources a lot of their materials from farms using this method.
So what is it? And how does it help Fashion restore its relationship with Earth?
Agriculture can suck:
Agriculture today uses loads of chemicals, and lots of big heavy machinery (and a lot of water!) to produce as much as possible. This all sucks for the environment, and in particular for Soil.
Soil also stores a lot of carbon. But constant ploughing means lots of it is released. This is a big contributor to the carbon emissions of the agricultural industry which account for a third of total emissions globally!
The chemicals poison the soil with disastrous results on wildlife. It means less biodiversity, so a less productive and healthy ecosystem. And those pesticides work their way up the food chain to us too.
So not great.
So what is regenerative agriculture?
Regenerative agriculture is an approach to farming that focuses on soil health, which obviously is the basis of any farming and a cornerstone of our planet's ecosystems. It focuses on treating soil organically and with as little human disturbance as possible.
So that means no pesticides. Little or no heavy machinery ploughing up the soil. And a regular rotation of crops.
And the results are…….
Well endless!
It reduces carbon emissions - not ploughing up the soil all the time means more is stored and less released. One study by The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in America found that if adopted across the USA it could eliminate upwards of 250 million tons of CO2 annually = 5% of the ENTIRE emissions from America!
There are no chemicals, so it’s good for nature. And being at the top of the food chain, good for us.
The lack of chemicals also means there is greater biodiversity, which means a healthier ecosystem which once again, is great for humans!
So healthy soil = happy planet!
Fashion
Fashion obviously relies on a lot of raw materials. Cotton, Linen, Wool, Bamboo etc etc. A large part of the negative impact the industry has comes from where it gets these from, and how these are produced. Sourcing it from producers not farming the right way means our garments are directly increasing carbon emissions and contributing to decreased biodiversity in our planet which could have disastrous long term consequences for humans.
So if fashion adopts regenerative agriculture in its partners, it will have a major impact on making the industry greener.
It’s why we are so excited to partner with Neem. A major source of their cotton is from a regenerative farm in Turkey. They went to the farm. They have spoken to the farmer. They have verified it’s genuinely sustainable.
It’s a brilliant example of what fashion brands can do. But this does take time, it does take money. It takes effort.
It's why we are proud to support Neem. Because it’s how change is going to happen. You can drive that change too. Neem’s shirts are awesome - so stylish! But a consequence of buying from them means supporting their mission, and supporting that farmer in Turkey, to do the right thing.
This is how we can ALL change the industry!
By buying their shirts, rather than a player who is not doing the right thing, you are supporting Neem, supporting that farmer in Turkey. Your money can drive change.
